540 – Regalia and Search Complete.

“Mm-hmm, no doubt about it. That’s the same army I saw on the way here. The exact number? Let’s see... 20,348. Out of those, 20,037 are equipped with golems. They all look pretty much the same except for the color, so I’d say they’re factory-made. Doesn’t seem like they’ve got any flying types. They’ll be arriving here in about ten minutes.”

“Got it. Stay on standby.”

I ended the call with Monica, who was in stealth mode, hovering above.

Turning around, I spoke to Her Majesty the Queen, who wore a worried expression.

“It seems there’s no mistake. A military force of just under twenty thousand is heading this way. They’ll arrive in around ten minutes. Their banner shows a purple sea serpent.”

“That would be Marquis Belius’s army. He’s allied with Duke Bluesson, who’s currently occupying the royal capital. Though ‘allied’ is just a polite way of saying ‘under his command.’”

Apparently, this army was sent by Duke Bluesson, the ringleader of the anti-queen faction. He also has royal blood and is said to be second only to Her Majesty in terms of noble lineage.

The royal capital, under his control, is now under martial law. The people are being oppressed, stripped of their freedoms.

By taking the capital, he’s basically trying to prove to the other nobles that he is the rightful heir to the throne.

“And our forces?”

“Around five thousand. Even if we request reinforcements from the nearest city, it’ll take at least two days.”

The commander who had come to report earlier answered my question. So, we’re at about one-fourth their strength. If we hole up and wait for reinforcements, we might stand a chance, but...

“The sea serpent banner again? That old guy just won’t give up, huh.”

“Oh? Steph, do you know him?”

Steph, who had been listening in, muttered in annoyance.

“He attacked Oneesama before. Gold and I drove him off. He kept yelling, ‘You damn brats! Drop dead!’ It was super annoying.”

“Alright, time to crush them.”

...Did he just tell my daughter to drop dead?

Unforgivable. That’s a sin worthy of a thousand deaths. No... Killing him outright won’t make him suffer enough. Maybe I should show him what hell on Earth looks like...?

“Your Majesty, calm down. Put away the bloodlust. You’re scaring the kids.”

“...Just kidding. Just kidding.”

“H-huh...?”

Snapped back to my senses by Sakura’s words, I gave Her Majesty a sheepish smile—though honestly, she looked more disturbed than the children.

Come on now, it’s not like I’d really snap over something like that... Well, okay, maybe I was a tiny bit serious. Just a smidge. Barely even.

“I’ll drive him off again! Let’s go, Gold!”

“Roger.”

“Whoa, hold it.”

I stopped Steph as she tried to rush out with Gold.

“I’ll handle this. Steph, wait here with Sue.”

“Tou-sama’s going?”

“Tou-sama, no crushing people, okay?”

Tried to look cool as a dad, but Yoshino shot me down instantly. …Yeah, yeah. I won’t crush him. Just gotta drive him off again. That’s all.

“W-will you be alright?”

“I’ll be fine. I’ve chased off this kind of army a few times already. It’s nothing new. Just wait here for a bit.”

After reassuring Her Majesty, I projected the map from my smartphone into the air and checked the surroundings.

“【Multiple】.Target lock: Marquis Belius’s army.”

“Roger.”

Red dots on the map were tagged one after another. With twenty thousand troops, it’s taking a bit of time.

Still, they’re marching in formation, which makes it easier to lock onto them.

“Lock complete.”

“Hmm... Let’s go to the plains near the Kingdom of Primula. Activate【Gate】beneath all of Marquis Belius’s forces.”

“Roger. Activating now.”

Using the same route I’d traveled earlier with Gungnir, I selected the coordinates and activated the【Gate】spell.

“And... that’s that.”

“Huh?”

Her Majesty blinked, looking puzzled.

Well, yeah. From her perspective, I basically just waved my hand around and said ‘done.’ Of course she’d be confused.

A knight burst into the room in a panic shortly after.

“R-reporting in! According to our scouts, Marquis Belius’s army suddenly vanished! It was like... like they got sucked into the earth...!”

Everyone in the room—Her Majesty, the knights—stood there dumbfounded.

“U-um... Could it be that His Majesty did this...?”

“Yes. I teleported them near the Daola Mountain Range. It'll take them several dozen days to get back here.”

“So... you didn’t crush them.”

“I told you, I was joking.”

Sue chuckled at me as I sipped the tea someone handed me. Oh, that’s good stuff.

“I already thought Steph’s magic was crazy, but... His Majesty’s magic is on a whole different level...”

Her Majesty the Queen wore a complicated expression—partly as if she was genuinely shocked, partly as if she was completely dumbfounded—as she reminded the captain of the guards to stay on high alert for the time being.Does she still not trust us? Well, I guess it’s normal not to believe something like this. It's always the same, so I won’t take it personally.

“So, about the Regalia…”

“Ah, yes. The Regalia is a symbol of royal authority in the Kingdom of Refan, passed down from one king to the next. However, three generations before me—during my great-grandfather's time—there was a conflict over the throne, and the Regalia went missing.”

“If you have it, will this Duke Bluesson back down from the capital?”

“If word spreads that I have the Regalia, the neutral faction will surely support me. Once that happens, Duke Bluesson won’t stand a chance. We’ll then move to demand his surrender.”

The Regalia—the symbol of royal power. Its absence gave Duke Bluesson the excuse he needed to rebel. If it returns, he’ll have nothing left to fight with.

But man… what if we don’t find it? I mean, even I can’t just magically track down anything.

If there’s a concealment barrier over it or it’s just… completely gone from this world, then there's no hope of finding it.

“So, what kind of item is this Regalia? Is it a sword? A royal seal? Or maybe a crown?”

Sue asked the very thing I had in mind. Right—if we don’t even know what it is, how are we supposed to search for it?

“No, the Regalia of the Refan Kingdom… is actually a musical instrument.”

“A musical instrument!?”

It was Yoshino who reacted instantly to Her Majesty’s words. Sakura, beside her, looked equally intrigued. I mean, it’s understandable—they both love music—but hey, maybe tone down the excitement a little? Her Majesty looked kinda taken aback.

“Just to be clear, you mean an instrument that makes actual sounds, right?”

“Yes. It’s a small metal vertical flute. We call it the Stella no Fue—the Flute of Stella.”

“That sounds just like Steph’s name!”

“Fufu, yes, it does.”

At Steph’s comment, Her Majesty smiled. Steph and Stella. Yeah, they do sound similar.

Apparently, according to Her Majesty, all members of the royal family in Refan are drilled in playing the flute from a young age—so much that they end up hating it.

During the coronation ceremony, they’re required to perform a piece in front of the people. The idea is that by listening to the performance, the citizens get a sense of what kind of ruler the new monarch will be.

If they mess up under the pressure, the people might say things like, “What a weak and unreliable king,” huh?

Well, I suppose your personality really comes through depending on the piece you choose.

“Hey, hey! Then, did Your Majesty also play the flute?”

“When I ascended the throne, the Flute of Stella had already been lost, so I didn’t play at my coronation. But since I was forced to practice it endlessly as a child, I can still play it even now.”

Responding to Yoshino’s question, Her Majesty reached for a flute displayed on the fireplace mantel. It was a wooden flute, less than thirty centimeters long.

Without hesitation, she brought it to her lips and began to play.

The soft, flowing tempo created a gentle, beautiful sound that lingered in our ears. I’d never heard the song before, but the peaceful melody put both my body and mind at ease. For a while, all of us were completely captivated.

When the performance ended, applause erupted throughout the room.

“That was amazing. So, Your Majesty is a musician, too?”

“Oh, no, no. Any member of the royal bloodline can perform at that level…”

Her Majesty was being modest, but even a complete amateur like me could tell—her performance was on a whole other level.

And now, visibly itching to perform themselves, were the mother-daughter duo of Sakura and Yoshino. Looks like Her Majesty’s music had stirred something in them.

“We’ll play something for you too, Your Majesty!”

“Eh, Yoshino? Sakura? This is going off-track now…”

“I don’t mind at all. I’d love to hear some music from Brunhilde as well.”

Just as I tried to rein in my way-too-free-spirited daughter and wife, Her Majesty gave them the green light.

Well… technically, what they play isn’t Brunhilde’s music. It’s basically music from Earth…

Yoshino activated her smartphone and conjured transparent, glass-like instruments in mid-air. Her music magic. Guitar, bass, and drums?

“Tou-sama, you too! Here!”

“Eh!? Me too!?”

Yoshino handed me the bass. Wait a sec, I’m not that good at bass…

What are we even playing? If it’s this bass model, there are only a few songs I can manage.

Yoshino responded with the name of a song my grandpa had taught me. Hmm… I practiced it quite a bit back then, so I think I can pull it off. Probably. It’s been a while, though, so I might be a bit rusty.

I plucked the bass strings. Let’s see if I still got it…

When I looked up, I saw Kansuke-nii-san already seated at the drums. …Hey, you music god. When did you show up?

Her Majesty blinked in surprise, but I signaled her with my hand that everything was fine.

“Let’s gooo!”

At Yoshino’s shout, I struck the bass strings and began setting the rhythm. The energetic bassline kicked things off, followed by Yoshino’s colorful guitar riffs.

Then Sakura’s vocals came in.

The song we played was a hit from a vocal group formed by a young artist with the title “King of Pop” and his siblings.

This debut song hit number one on the U.S. charts instantly, and the group went on to achieve four consecutive number-one hits after that.

The bass in this song stands out big time. In other words, it’s a foundational pillar for the entire track.

Gah… trying to keep up with Kansuke-nii-san and Yoshino is rough…!

Sue and Steph, sitting on the sofa, began clapping along to Sakura’s voice. Her Majesty and even the guards joined in.

The song’s title, I Want You Back, oddly fits Her Majesty's search for the Regalia.

I don’t know if Yoshino had that meaning in mind when she picked the song… but I’m guessing it was just a lucky coincidence.

After somehow getting through the entire song, we were met with a round of applause. Whew… keeping up with my daughter is exhausting…

“​That was a wonderful performance! I couldn't understand the lyrics, but the music truly resonated with me.”​

When Her Majesty the Queen said that and praised them, Yoshino blushed and replied with a bashful, “Ehehe.” Meanwhile, Sakura flashed a tiny but proud-looking peace sign. By the way, Kansuke-nii-san was already gone. Did he just teleport here only to perform a session? That guy…

“Ah, sorry. Back to the topic—could you tell me more about the shape of that flute? If we can get the details, we’ll have a much better chance of finding it.”

“Ah, yes, in that case, I have a few photos. Please wait a moment.”

Her Majesty the Queen opened the drawer of a desk in the room and pulled out several photographs. Over here on the Western Continent, camera-eye tech developed for golems had long since been adapted into cameras, so photos have been around for quite some time.

That said, the photos she brought were all sepia-toned and clearly aged—most likely taken a long time ago.

Well, it was said to have gone missing during her grandfather’s time. That checks out.

There were two photos. One was of a boy about Steph’s age holding a flute. The other looked like a family photo taken in a living room. On the table in the center sat a box, and inside that box was the flute.

“This boy here is my grandfather. The flute he’s holding—that’s the Flute of Stella.”

Oh? Is this boy her grandfather? Then this must’ve been close to a hundred years ago.

Still, the flute he’s holding doesn’t seem to have any distinctive features. About the only thing we can tell is that it’s roughly the same length as the one Her Majesty has.

“What about this family photo?”

“That’s my grandfather, along with his father and mother—so my great-grandparents—and his younger brother... my great-uncle. This great-uncle later contested my grandfather for the throne. In the end, he lost… and then set the family mansion on fire and took his own life. It was only after that that we realized the Flute of Stella had vanished.”

Hmm. So that great-uncle might’ve hidden it somewhere before he died...

“Did this great-uncle have any children?”

“He did, but they were purged during the conflict. Most of the key figures in the great-uncle faction were purged. And it was only after the purges that the flute was discovered missing, so... there’s no information at all.”

Hmm... I mean, regalia like that isn’t something you just leave lying around. When it was decided that Her Majesty’s grandfather would ascend the throne, they checked the box for the coronation and found it empty.

Apparently, it caused a huge uproar. It’d be like one of Japan’s Imperial Regalia suddenly vanishing. Of course, people panicked.

I stared hard at the flute in the photo. Unfortunately, the grandfather’s hand was covering part of it, so I couldn’t really make out the whole shape.

The family photo version was too small and blurry. Well, I kind of get the general shape, so I guess it’s fine...

“You mentioned it was made of metal—what material exactly?”

“Orihalcum.”

Whoa, an orihalcum flute? Now that’s a regalia. That also means it’s probably not broken. Still, it’s not impossible that it got melted down and reused for its material. Orihalcum is rare, after all.

But... anyone who knows the value of regalia wouldn’t do that… right?

Well, whatever. Time to investigate.

I pulled out my smartphone and opened the map of this country. For now, let’s start within the national borders.

“Search: ‘Flute of Stella’”

『Searching... Search complete. Displaying now.』

One glowing point appeared on the map. Nice! If there’s only one, there’s probably no mistake!

Huh? But wait, isn’t that…

As I frowned at the screen, probably looking troubled, Her Majesty got a little anxious and asked:

“Wh-what is it?”

“Ah, no, um… We did find it, but the location is…”

I turned the map to show Her Majesty, floating it in midair for clarity.

The glowing dot on the map of the Kingdom of Refan pointed to…

“The Royal Capital—Refanshia…!?”

“Your Majesty!?”

The Queen let out a startled cry.Ah… so this is the Royal Capital. And the Regalia is here—right in the heart of enemy territory.

In other words…

“What is the meaning of this? Are you saying that this Duke Bluesson or whoever managed to get the flute before us?”

“No, that’s impossible. If that man had gotten his hands on Stella’s Flute, he would’ve announced it by now—and forced me to abdicate.”

Her Majesty responded to Sue’s question, her voice steady.

So then…

“The Flute of Stella is in the Royal Capital… but no one’s even noticed it?”

“The thing they’ve been chasing after this whole time is literally beneath their feet… and they don’t even realize it. Hah. That’s hilarious.”

“Ugh…”

Her Majesty clutched her chest at my words.

Ah—crap. I forgot. She used to live in the capital…

“Touya-sama! Choose your words more carefully!”

“…Sorry.”

Sakura scolded me sharply.

Well, uh, you know how it is… “the darkest place is right under the lamp,” or however that saying goes! Happens all the time!

“Touya, so where exactly in the capital is it?”

“Hmm, hang on a sec… Right about… here? Wait—what?”

I pinched the screen of my smartphone to zoom in on the map.The glowing point was inside a large building.If I had to guess… yeah, it’s that place, isn’t it?

“This location…! Isn’t this inside the royal castle?!”

“No way…! After all these decades of searching!?”

Her Majesty stared at the map in disbelief, eyes wide. Man, I’m starting to feel bad here.

It’s like someone turning their house upside-down looking for their wallet, asking people along their commute, even filing a police report—only to realize, “Oh, it was in my pants pocket the whole time.”

“Why!?”

“I mean… I’d like to know that too…”

Her Majesty cried out—but not at me. She was still glaring at the screen. It wasn’t frustration at someone in particular—it was just the sheer absurdity of it all.

“Why couldn’t we find it while I was still living in the castle!? Why did it only turn up after I was kicked out!? Why!?”

Well, you were the one who asked us to look for it, Your Majesty.I get how you feel, but try to calm down a little, yeah?

“At least we know where it is now, right? Isn’t that a good thing?”

“Of course I’m happy! I am happy, but also—urgh! It’s just so frustrating and humiliating and—ARGH! Aaaaargh!!”

Her Majesty screamed and held her head in her hands.The knights nearby were panicking, unsure how to respond.

“Queen, are you okay?”

“When you’re an adult… there are just… all kinds of things…”

“All kinds?”

“Yes. All kinds.”

“Being an adult sounds like a pain.”

Sue and Steph exchanged puzzled looks as they watched the Queen scream.

Yeah… stress must be piling up for her. It’s not even her fault the Regalia was lost in the first place, and yet people won’t acknowledge her as queen unless she has it.Honestly, that just sounds like some petty excuse to reject her.

Still… this sort of “authority” isn’t something you can ignore.Maybe we should have some kind of royal proof of legitimacy ourselves.

Smartphone? Hmm… no, this is technically a divine artifact. Can’t just leave that behind on Earth.If one of my bad descendants inherited it, a dark god might be born from their negative emotions.

Guess I’ll go with the sword-gun, Brunhilde.I’ll pass it on to Kuon when I step down.…Though Silver’s probably going to pout about that.

While I was lost in thought, Her Majesty finally seemed to calm down.

“I lost my composure…”

“No worries at all.”

Really. I get how she feels.