Reincarnation into the Barrier Master

It sounded like an explosion. I involuntarily looked in the direction of the sound. He could see white smoke rising from a building on top of a small hill.

"Did something explode?

Knogen mutters with a doubtful expression. Matkal, too, folded his arms and looked in the direction of the sound.

"It could be a signal of some kind."

Matkal mutters to himself and opens his mouth to the soldiers standing by.

"Tell the whole army. There is a possibility that the enemy will attack us all. Tell them to be on their guard.

The messengers ran away from the scene as if they were hares.

The soldiers were running away from the place like rabbits.

The ship with Vieille on board entered the harbor without any attack. I had expected a very fierce battle, and I was disappointed.

However, the seas were crowded with vessels of the nations that followed Klimiana. If they attacked us, we would be helpless.

I stopped the ship for the time being. If we enter the harbor, we risk becoming rats in the bag. To avoid that, I decided to stay where I could see the movement in the harbor and watch the situation.

But after waiting for a while, there was no sign of movement of the enemy deployed at sea, and no battle was taking place in the harbor. The army led by Vieille did not come ashore, but simply anchored quietly in the harbor.

There was a strange tension in the air, but then a small boat came toward our ship. To our surprise, Vieille was on board.

"Thanks to you, we were able to enter the port without any problems. Thank you very much.

With a big smile on her face, she bowed to us. Behind her, there was a man who glared at me with sharp eyes. I recognized this man.

"Huh?　I believe you are ......"

"......"

The man remained silent in response to my question. In his eyes, I could see an emotion akin to murderous intent.

"This is Gillette, the second-in-command of my SS. Please make your acquaintance from now on.

Vieille intervenes. I remember. The assassin who came to Agartha. The one whom Siddee's instincts had stopped.

I look at the man again and he quickly looks away and bows his head. It seems that he does not want to communicate with me. I look at Vieille, she is still smiling, but her body is giving off the vibe that she doesn't want me to touch him any more.

"But still, Vieille, how did you manage to get here alone in the midst of all these enemies?"

"Ho-ho-ho. Gillette is here. And I have the warding stone that the king of Agartha gave me. With these two things, I'm not afraid of anything.

She laughs mischievously.

"Well, it's good that you got into port safely, but what are you going to do now?"

About that. I would like to hold a military discussion with you about the future. I am sorry, but I am not ......."

"Okay. Let's get everyone together.

Thank you.

I ordered a soldier to tell Nike of Sandanzi and the Duke of Vilas to come here. Meanwhile, Knogen was about to escort Vieille and the others to the cabin, but Gillette, who was waiting for her, brusquely refused, saying that it was useless. The man left Vieille alone and went away. Vieille herself did not blame him for his behavior and watched the sea birds flying by, looking at the sky.

Eventually, the man returned carrying a large umbrella and a board like a blackboard. He unfolded the umbrella and set it on the deck, and when he touched the board, it turned into a chair. When he put it under the umbrella, Vieille sat down on the chair as if it were a matter of course. Gillette was waiting outside the umbrella on one knee in the brilliant sunlight.

"...... ready for you."

Matkal, who had been watching the whole scene with me, muttered something to me. I couldn't help but laugh.

"Well, they say that ultraviolet rays are your skin's worst enemy. It seems that Vieille is very particular about her appearance.

"Sigaisen ......?　I don't know about you, but if it's hot, just go to the shade."

"Well, yes, that's true. Maybe they want to emphasize their elegance and show that they can afford to be so. By the way, don't you mind getting a tan, Mato?"

"...... sorry. I don't understand your question."

"Come to think of it, you have a tan, but you have beautiful skin, don't you? Are you taking care of it?"

"Care?　I don't do that. I just wash my face with cold water."

"I see. I've heard a lot about sunburn causing spots ......, so I was wondering if you were taking any precautions ......."

"You cannot serve in the military if you are concerned about such things. A soldier must always keep his skin tanned or he will be seen as untrained. Or do you think ...... that a tanned woman is unfit to be a queen, Master Linos?"

"No, that's not true. No, I don't think so. I prefer the tanned ones.

"After all, is Linos-sama the same?"

"Same?　What is it?"

"Some of the soldiers prefer tanned women. I've heard them say that the difference between the tanned part and the un-tanned part excites them. ......"

"No, I'm not on your side."

"......"

"Oh, hon."

While I was talking nonsense with Matkal, Knogen came over. He had brought Vieille something to drink. He is a thoughtful guy as always. I thanked him politely and let him leave.

I looked at Vieille and saw that she was sipping the drink that had been served to her. Behind her, Gillette is still intimidating the others with her sharp eyes. I ordered a nearby soldier to bring cold water and brought it to Gillette.

"Here you go, drink it."

"......"

"We're about to have a war council. It may take a long time. Keep yourself hydrated. Don't worry. It's probably, probably, probably not poisoned. I don't know, I didn't prepare it myself, but I'm sure it'll be fine. It's just cold enough to drink. Drink it."

"...... don't need it."

"...... thirsty, aren't you?"

"......"

"Gillette. It's a good opportunity. It is not often that a king of Agartha prepares something like this for you himself.

Vieille opens her mouth with a big smile on her face. Gillette glanced at Vieille for a moment, then seemed to give up and reached for my glass.

He stared at the water in the glass, then suddenly brought it to his lips and drank it down in one gulp.

"Tastes good, doesn't it?"

"...... delicious."

"That's great."

I took the glass and smiled at the man. He wiped his mouth with his arm, but did not make eye contact with me.

At that moment, one of the soldiers came up to me at a quick pace. He told me that Nike had arrived at the ship and immediately left.

Nique appeared in his place.

"Oh, Mr. Vieille! What is the matter with you?

Upon seeing him, Vieille slowly stood up, walked over to Nique, and quickly bent her knees in front of him.

"I am sorry. I had expected a fierce battle, but the enemy has not attacked us at all. At any rate, we are glad to have arrived at Aphrodite unharmed. We owe this to King Nike's majesty.

"What are you talking about? We didn't do anything. We've done nothing.

No, the real battle is just beginning.

"Mm. Yes. From now on.

At that moment there was a report that the Duke of Vilas had arrived. I ordered chairs and desks to be prepared for the war council.