“Are you sure we need to deliver these supplies directly to the location?” Tatsumi asked Ame. The truth was he did not want to do it for some reason.
“Yes. We are also contributing to the Star Battle by helping those at the frontline. Even if we are only a small and insignificant figure in the grand scheme of things, but I believe that our effort will also bear fruit if done properly.” Ame smiled when Tatsumi asked her that.
“Sounds like a true profiteer.” Tatsumi commented before he continued, “But we need to be careful. It is near the Rift and we don’t know what the enemy civilization will bring to our side. It can be something that can bypass our frontline.”
Ame had a serious expression on her face. She sighed.
“Well, we just need to be vigilant and hope that whatever comes our way can be dealt with by our weaponry.”
Tatsumi did not have a good feeling about this but he knew that the frontline needed the supplies from everyone. Having more supply would not hurt; it would be welcomed.
This occurred several hours after Long Wu and the transcendent group departed from the Transcendent Academy and headed toward the Rift. The logistics took some time to prepare for the necessities the soldiers and the transcendent needed.
Especially the items for transcendents, it was more complicated to process, as they involved the undead element and had to be sealed tightly so that they would not affect ordinary people.
Tatsumi looked at the prepared supplies with wonder.
‘We need to bring these to the frontline on another continent, through the Undead Secret Realm at that.’
As a Reservist, they would not be placed on the frontline at all. But they were needed as support so the moment the order to send the supplies meant for the soldiers was delivered, the responsibility fell on them to escort them.
Currently, they were still at the Transcendent Academy. Both Tatsumi and Ame were becoming the Reservist enlisted in the Thebes Independent Kingdom.
‘Furthermore, there is him.’ Tatsumi turned his head and saw that there was a gathering in the distance in the garden of the academy.
There was a familiar figure that Tatsumi knew through the Memory Assimilation. Even Headmaster Kushina personally attended the figure.
He was a middle-aged man with some of his hair greyed out. There were traces of wrinkles on his face but it did not diminish the dashing figure he had.
“Your Majesty, what do we owe the pleasure of your visiting this academy?” Kushina asked with a polite tone. Despite the figure’s lack of transcendent energy in his body, his status was enough to warrant her respect.
The figure then lifted the corner of his mouth slightly as his eyes narrowed a bit before replying.
“I am here to see the new generation of potential transcendents our civilization has.”
Tatsumi, who saw the figure from a distance, knew the identity of this figure. Even Ame, who was sensitive enough to notice Tatsumi’s gaze, realized who the figure was.
“Is that Rao, the current king of the Thebes Independent Kingdom?” Ame asked with a hint of disbelief in her tone. She often heard about him through the family intelligence channel but to think that she would see such a figure up close.
“Looks like it.” Tatsumi replied flatly. Whether Rao was at the academy or not did not matter to him in the slightest. It was just that he felt a sense of nostalgia seeing the young man from his memory turned into a middle-aged man.
“What’s with your tone?” Ame knew that Tatsumi was thinking about something but the most obvious thing she could detect from him was about his tone. It felt like encountering something familiar to one’s eyes.
‘Is this perhaps his way of communicating with the Afterlife?’ Ame thought in her head before she shifted her gaze to the two in the distance.
Although it was a bit of a distance, it did not mean that their voice was not heard. In fact, everyone purposely turned silent to listen to the figure. Especially the students, their eyes were threatened to bulge out of their eye sockets.
“It looks like the students will be doing their escort duty. Is the preparation thorough?” Rao asked while looking around him to see various students doing their own thing.
Some of them were preparing their weapons, both cold and hot, while the others were concerned with the supplies they were supposed to carry.
“They are still new to this. But I make sure to stress the importance of following simple order and procedure so that they can be helpful.” Kushina explained in a simple sentence.
Of course, the struggle to do that was another matter to discuss but at least some of that lesson showed.
Then Rao looked at the black-haired young man in the distance, who stared at him with a nostalgic expression. Rao was sure that he had never ever seen the young man but something stirred inside of him, subtly telling him that the young man was an important person.
Near the young man was the young woman who was of a similar age. Rao had seen many things in his life and knew that the two were having a subtle dynamic. He just did not know whether it was good or bad. Furthermore, the young woman was someone he knew from the intelligence network.
Then Rao decided to get closer to the young man. His cape, which was attached to him, was fluttering slightly as he moved. He wore the formal palace attire to announce that his visit was a duty.
Tatsumi, who had seen that, tried to calm his inner turmoil. He did not expect that Rao would be walking in his direction, and he was not prepared yet.
‘What should I say to him!?’ Tatsumi went into thinking overload. He felt that he was affected by the memory but it could not be helped.
Ame could feel that Tatsumi had become a bit stiff as his limbs twitched. She tilted her head to the side, wondering what was on his head, when she realized that Rao was closing in on their position.
‘Is he probably nervous seeing Rao? Why, though?’ Ame asked internally. She knew that Tatsumi was not someone intimidated by mere position, as she had seen so far. But if it made him nervous, there could be some explanations for the matter that she did not know.
But what she knew was that this encounter would probably turn into something important. She also saw that Kushina was trailing behind Rao.
“Hello there, young man.” Rao began the conversation. He hoped that he could find something through the young man.
Tatsumi was stunned for a while. Then he managed to get some words out of his mouth.
“Your Majesty. What makes you come to me?”
Seeing the clearly nervous expression of the young man, Rao smiled while keeping a certain distance from the young man.
“I wonder why you are giving me that look and expression. Consider this as something personal, so don’t worry.” Rao explained his purpose.
Tatsumi calmed the stiff limbs before he continued.
“Well, I just feel like meeting someone I am familiar with.”
But in his mind, there was another voice. The one who sometimes helped him during his inner struggle.
‘Seeing him grow up healthy is all that matter. He also made it so that the legacy left to him remains intact.’
‘Uncle Goto, why are you saying this now?’ Tatsumi whispered internally.
‘He knew that the change in civilization was inevitable, so he kept what could be kept and used those that he could not keep to gain something else.’ Goto said while Tatsumi detected a nostalgic tone in the voice.
‘What should I say now? I kind of find it difficult to communicate with him.’ Tatsumi revealed what was on his mind. He could only give a respectful bow to Rao.
“Is that so? Why that particular expression then? It reminds me of someone, someone who gives me the burden of ruling.” Rao said while his eyes never left Tatsumi’s face.
Tatsumi stared back, as if resolved that he could only do this to mask his swirling emotions. He had realized that some of the memories were affecting him in life and he found it out the most during these moments.
But his eyes wavered as he could not help but feel the way he was feeling.
Ame looked at the two and did not understand what was attracting Rao to Tatsumi. She shifted her gaze slightly to Kushina behind Rao and found out that even the headmaster could only look without interfering.
“Perhaps it is just a coincidence. After all, Your Majesty has to make sure that the fire of civilization is safe.” Tatsumi blurted out something that he felt close to. But then he realized that he was doing something like a blunder.
After all, that was what Goto had said to Rao once and Tatsumi felt like the circumstances were also familiar.
‘Ah…I screwed up.’ Tatsumi wanted to facepalm himself but could not do so.
Rao’s eyes brightened when he heard that. He regarded that word as his goal in his ruling. But reality hit him hard, and he had to make a compromise due to the growing power of the transcendent at that time.
Rao placed his hand on Tatsumi’s shoulder and looked at him as if he were someone close.
“So it is true that you are that important.” Rao spoke in a bit of cryptic language. Tatsumi frowned when he heard that. He understood that he had given the exact words of Goto but to think that he spoke in such a manner right after that, clearly there was something he did not know.
Then Rao stepped back and Tatsumi took a breath to calm his nerves.
“I always knew that I was important, but I don’t know that even Your Majesty knows about me. I am honored.” Tatsumi said while trying to sort out his clothes. He knew that Rao was the kind who prioritized the essence of things so speaking directly was the better choice.
But Tatsumi had to make a respectful gesture since their position were too different.
“Of course, that can be attributed to the headmaster. Is that right?” Rao turned his head to Kushina who smiled slightly at the ruler of the kingdom.
“Right, Your Majesty. But you should also check what we are doing. Remember why you are here.” Kushina was speaking to Rao like an equal. And indeed, it was the case. The power she had became the foundation of her authority in the Thebes Kingdom.
Rao nodded while shrugging his shoulders.
“Well, what are you doing here?” he asked Tatsumi. Since he was here to see the progress of the rear, where the logistics were trying to provide the frontline with abundant supplies, he might as well do it with the young man who caught his interest.
“We are checking the equipment that has just arrived.” Tatsumi answered. Then he turned around and asked Ame.
“Ame, what are the current supplies that are ready to be delivered?”
Ame held a paper that recorded the current supplies that they were in charge of.
She said, “We have a dozen kilograms of gunpowder, several hundred rifles, dozens of artillery shells, miscellaneous items for supportive purposes in the frontline as well as food and drinks. This is for the supplies right in my position.
“Should I add more?”
Tatsumi felt like that was enough for a demonstration.
“That is more than enough.” Tatsumi said before he looked at Rao, and had an incredulous expression on his face.
“So you will bring these to the frontline, along with the other Reservist.” Rao murmured while touching the tip of his hair. He felt that those were the backbone of the frontline so he should make sure that they were well protected.
He then looked around and saw that the students were busy with the supplies that were handed to them.
“We have to wait for some more since the need for supplies has not arrived yet. If the Cerulean Defense Force issued the order, we would likely be sent immediately.” Tatsumi added.
Rao knew that what the young man said was true. He felt that the Star Battle was a dangerous event where the civilization’s fate was at stake and now all of them were engulfed in it.
To him, it would be better if there were no Star Battle at all. But since the reality of the world he lived in proved otherwise, he needed to adapt to it and that was exactly what he did.
Then Rao decided to just watch as Tatsumi and Ame were preparing the supplies as carefully as possible. Kushina was standing beside him, watching over the ruler as it was necessary as a precaution.
Seeing them reminded him of his past self.
Tatsumi felt uncomfortable being watched by Rao but he put the feelings aside as it was better than directly engaging the middle-aged man with words. He checked the supplies and found out none of them were defective.
Ame was beside him, helping to confirm the condition of the supplies with the records on paper.
“Do you have something against His Majesty?” Ame asked since she was curious about it.
“I feel like I'm out of place. My heart is a mess. It feels like I am waging a war with something that I am not ready for.” Tatsumi vented out a bit. He turned his head slightly to stare at her brown eyes.
“Is he perhaps the one who helped your family?” Tatsumi launched a question that Ame did not expect.
“What makes you ask that?” Ame’s heart skipped a beat. But she returned the stare back at him.
“Because the delivery of the supplies that require Mikazuki Heavy Industry is being approved at a fast rate. It is even to the point of being ready to be used at any moment. The only authority in this kingdom that can allow such a thing to happen can only be one person. Do I need to say more?” Tatsumi flashed a knowing smile.
Ame felt like Tatsumi was uncovering things at an accelerated pace. At this rate, he might uncover the hidden truths that even she did not know about.
“No need. You are right.” Ame admitted since it was easy for Tatsumi to see things from his observation as well as the knowledge that came from the Afterlife.
Then she continued, “My father has been communicating with various leaders of the Comberth Continent to expand the business of our family. And one of them who receives our business is His Majesty Rao. We have a mutually beneficial relationship where the Kingdom provided us with some samples from their kingdom, not limited to the transcendent-related things, while we provided our services and some of our construction projects.
“Then we can deepen our cooperation. Easier entry to the kingdom for our business since we are competent and trustworthy.”
Ame looked at Tatsumi and was surprised to see that he listened to her, that he even showed it through his body language. He was directing his body at her, his eyes at her, while having a contemplative look on his face as he heard her words.
“I see.” Tatsumi commented while placing the last item in its previous place.
Then Tatsumi looked up and saw that all the listed items were in perfect condition and all they had to do was just deliver them.
“Our parts are done. Is there anything we can do?” Tatsumi asked her since the current task was enough to keep them busy.
“Nothing. Just deliver this when the time comes.” Ame replied.
“Are you done?” Rao came after seeing that the two were not busy anymore. Ame gave a respectful gesture since she could not do that before. Rao nodded with a smile.
‘She is really dedicated to things that she has eyes for. As for this young man…should I ask for his name? Come to think of it, I didn’t ask for his name. Someone this interesting should be noticeable, right? Add that headmaster Kushina has strangely looked at this young man with a particular look…’ Rao thought while also deciding his next words.
“Well, for now.” Tatsumi stood up and nodded his head.
Just as they wanted to converse further, there was a small commotion nearby. Those who detected that turned their head toward the person responsible.
Tatsumi reflexively moved without even seeing the complete picture of the event. But he could feel that someone needed help and he acted upon it.
Rao, Ame and Kushina followed since Tatsumi made the first move.
“Are you alright?” Tatsumi knew that it was just an accident the moment he set his eyes on the site. Several items poured out from its box while there was a young man similar in age to him fell to his knees.
Tatsumi then approached the young man while checking for any injuries. From the attire of the young man, Tatsumi knew that he was a student of the Transcendent Academy. He helped the young man stand up.
“Thanks. I messed up.” The young man said with a regret laced in his voice. He saw that the person helped him collect the items scattered on the ground.
What the young man did not expect was that Ame, Kushina and Rao helped him too. He then looked at the person who had helped him and realized that he looked familiar.
‘Wait, he is the person who has perfect compatibility with the new transcendent energy source. Even the young woman is also renowned. Then there is also the headmaster and…His Majesty!’ The young man’s thoughts became overwhelmed by the sight.
He then also gathered back the items while there were other students who also lent a hand to help him. Due to that, the ground became clean once more from the mess as the boxes were neatly arranged.