01x12 - When You Surround an Army, Leave an Outlet Free

[bunniefuu]

Van has fallen?

No, Father.

Look at that.

The castle hasn't fallen!

Chase out the enemy and enter the castle!

I have a report.

The Amidonian army is advancing.

They plan to attack all at once.

It'll be a head-on battle from here.

The flag was waved twice.

Take the V-formation.

The Royal Guard and Forbidden Army

will be in the center.

The left flank will be General Glaive.

The right flank will be Princess Liscia.

Take them on!

ORIGINAL STORY BY DOJYOMARU

Don't back down!

Show them how ferocious

Amidonian soldiers can be!

They invaded our land!

Take your anger out on them!

You will not lay a finger on the princess!

I am the one and only

Liscia Elfrieden, daughter of Albert.

Try to take me down,

if you have the courage!

Princess Liscia…

It seems your mind is elsewhere.

I'm the commander just by name,

so I'm better off twiddling my thumbs

in the stronghold.

You are the king, aren't you?

The only time a king can do anything

is before and after the w*r.

Other than that…

All I can do is offer my life

when the time calls for it

and plea for my soldiers to be spared.

You're not afraid of death?

Of course, I am scared.

I'm not suicidal or anything.

But you just said that you would

offer your life

when the time calls for it.

Huh? Oh, I guess I did.

That's weird…

Are you okay?

Carla, I might be fake.

You can't send soldiers into battle

unless you've completely become a king.

I didn't even notice it myself,

but I was playing a part

in this system as the king already.

I'm capable of executing a plan

as long as the number of lives I can save

is still positive after I subtract

the number of lives I will lose.

What are you talking about?

I'm a coward.

I don't want to see

myself or others get hurt or die.

But in order to go to w*r,

I had no choice but to act like a king

and become a part of the system.

Julius.

What is it, Father?

Leave this b*ttlefield.

What are you saying?

The battle has just begun.

We will lose this battle.

It was foolish of me to send

an exhausted army into the b*ttlefield.

I will buy you time,

so open up a path through the enemy flanks

and escape from here.

What?!

If that's the case, you should leave.

-I will buy time--

-That won't be possible.

Elfrieden is after my head.

As long as we take him down,

the hardliners within Amidonia

will be crushed.

To protect the Elfrieden Kingdom,

this is the best way.

Don't tell me…

Souma started all of this

just to k*ll you, Father?

If I were to retreat,

he will chase me to the ends of the earth.

Take your men and get out of here.

Julius, this new king is nothing like

the previous king, Albert.

Father! Then I will go with you.

No! This is an official order.

If I lose you,

what'll happen to our bloodline?

There's Roroa.

She has no interest

in the future of our family line.

Go, Julius.

Do not let the soul of Amidonia vanish.

Father…

Farewell.

I will show you the pride of an Amidonian.

My target is King Souma's head,

and nothing else!

Amidonia's main force

has escaped from the back.

However,

Prince Gaius and 500 elite knights

are charging toward this stronghold.

Carla,

I'll reassign the master

of your collar to Liscia.

If I am k*lled in this battle,

I want you to tell Liscia

that I hand the throne over to her.

Is that supposed to be your will?

Don't be ridiculous!

There's no way I can say yes to that.

Just order me to k*ll him.

It's not for you.

I don't want Liscia to be sad, that's all.

So order me to k*ll him!

-k*ll him.

-Understood.

You must be Prince Gaius.

I won't let you near the king!

Your Highness… fulfill… your wish…

Oh no. He's a double!

Out of my way! Move!

I will cut down anyone who gets in my way!

Move!

I am only interested in Souma's head.

A mere dragon newt cannot stop me.

I will fulfill the wish

of three generations right here.

Before I get to Souma,

I will slice you to pieces.

Did you think a mere puppet

could take down the great Gaius VIII?

Carla!

You are Souma Kazuya?

Yes. I am Souma Kazuya.

You must be Gaius Amidonia VIII,

who trampled on my land.

Nonsense!

It was originally Amidonia's territory.

What's wrong with

stepping onto my own land?

Out of my way!

Carla, burn the doll!

Okay!

Carla! Are you okay?

Why did you come out?

If you die, it'll devastate Liscia!

Souma Kazuya…

Until I behead you…

I will destroy the kingdom…

and show Amidonia's true grit…

You've treated me to an Elfrieden feast.

This is how Amidonia returns the favor!

I have witnessed the true grit

of the Amidonians.

The valor of Gaius VIII

of the Principality of Amidonia

will be talked about for generations.

I see.

Dad died, huh?

Hey, Sebastian,

can I be left alone for just a while?

He was an idiot until the very end.

WALTER DUCHY, LAGOON CITY

ROROA AMIDONIA

PRINCIPALITY OF AMIDONIA CAPITAL, VAN

It's a beautiful building.

They might have spent more money

on the decorations than Parnam Castle.

If they had that kind of money,

there are so many other things

they could have spent it on.

Like the complicated and confusing roads.

It's like a maze.

They purposely make it complicated

so that arrows and cannons

don't have a clear shot across.

It's truly a fiscal-military state.

You were planning

the occupation of Amidonia

for a while, weren't you?

Tell me, Souma.

-I didn't tell you because--

-I'm not accusing you.

I'm just wondering why

there were very few casualties

by the border even though

not many people even knew about it.

Oh, about that…

Hakuya shot down my idea

of having the villagers

by the border evacuate.

He said, "Why would you tell your enemy

that you know their next move?"

Do you remember

when a mysterious monster

appeared by the border?

Guard refugees from villages attacked by

mysterious monsters called flame pierrots.

It's simple, but the reward is huge.

Isn't that suspicious?

The reward must be high

to keep us from asking questions about it.

Juno, take a look at what's ahead.

Those are soldiers

from the Principality of Amidonia.

I better let them know.

Who's there?

The fire monsters!

This again?

Those guys from Amidonia

ran off with their tail

between their legs.

You saved me yet again.

That flame pierrot ordeal

was your plan to evacuate

the people by the border?

Your Majesty.

Report.

First,

it seems like Julius and his men

escaped to the west.

There was a princess as well,

but it seems she escaped this city

with the finance minister

and other high-ranking officials.

It'll be a pain without any bureaucrats.

Get in touch with Parnam

and have Hakuya send over officials.

Yes, Your Majesty.

Poncho.

I… I have a report on

the state of the national treasury.

Yes… As expected,

they barely have any funds

or food in reserve,

but they have an abundance

of weaponry, yes.

Let's sell the surplus of weaponry

and turn it into funds.

We will ration food until

things within the court settle down.

If there isn't enough,

I'd like to deliver some from the kingdom

as an emergency measure.

Is that possible?

As long as you can ensure

the safety en route,

it can be done, yes.

I'll make that top priority.

Next, Glaive.

The soldiers are following orders

and fully motivated.

At this rate,

I believe it is possible for us

to occupy the entirety

of Amidonia.

We're only taking Van.

We won't be fighting anymore.

Really?

Shouldn't we take down our enemy

while we can?

No matter how much

we expand our territory,

if the empire steps in,

it will all go to waste.

The empire will step in?

I can say for certain that they will.

We invaded Amidonia,

who signed the Mankind Declaration.

As the leading power,

there's no way they won't step in.

"There shall be no changes to

national borders

due to armed conflict between mankind."

Worst-case scenario,

we can expect military sanctions.

The principality invaded us first!

That's how international treaties work.

Amidonia will likely

argue that it's Elfrieden's fault

for not signing the treaty.

Why didn't you sign it, Souma?

You knew this would happen

if we fought against Amidonia, right?

Because I can't sign it.

That declaration has a catch.

-A catch?

-Yeah.

A dangerous catch that can lead to

the fall of the empire.

Before the empire moves,

let's clean up the postwar mess.

Their resentment toward

the Elfrieden Kingdom is deep.

What will His Majesty do about that?

According to Sima Qian,

"When a nation finds peace,

it makes way for culture."

So, let's bring in entertainment.

I'm completely lost.

Officer of Commander Excel of the Navy,

Juna Doma, reporting as ordered.

Thank you for coming.

Good work.

You look good in military uniform.

It's quite embarrassing

to appear before you

in this getup.

Don't be.

You look very beautiful

in this dignified outfit.

I called you here

so we can start a certain project.

-Project?

-Yes.

It's called Project Lorelei.

Hello, everyone.

I am Chris Tachyon.

This program is called News Elfrieden.

It is an informational program

that provides citizens with information

on the state of affairs

of Elfrieden Kingdom and nearby countries.

Oh no, Your Majesty.

I can't stop trembling.

Calm down, Aisha.

What happened to the reliable Aisha?

On the b*ttlefield,

I am confident that I will lose to no one.

But concerning fancy things like this,

I have no confidence.

Really?

I like your healthy look.

Yeah, you're pretty, Aisha.

R… Really?

But Your Majesty,

I think Juna should be the host.

Juna is a singer.

Plus, in an emergency,

you can protect me if you're nearby.

If you want me to be a bodyguard,

you can count on me!

That is all for News Elfrieden.

Well then,

after this program, we will broadcast

Elfrieden's very first entertainment show.

Please stay tuned.

Okay, let's go, Aisha.

Yes, I will follow you anywhere!

His Highness lost to someone like him?

They say he defeated Prince Gaius

with his ingenuity.

All right, this program

is Elfrieden's very first music show.

Our first singer looks like a little girl

but thinks like an adult.

Pamille Carol, of the kobito race.

Pamille's favorite thing to do

is make desserts.

But she's worried about her weight

because she eats too many of them.

Well then, let's have her sing.

Pamille Carol!

Come on, sing and dance together

Your age, gender, and race doesn't matter

Swaying with the wind in the wilderness

Just follow your heart

Next up is

the Elfrieden Kingdom's very own lorelei,

Juna Doma. Please come in.

On the beach with

The guiding lights of the torches

I open both arms

And continue to sing

So that I can embrace your shivering body

And wish for eternal peace

What's wrong, Your Majesty?

We're still on air.

Once the next performance starts,

I want you to guard me.

After Juna, I added a last-minute singer.

I didn't hear about this!

I don't think it will be a problem,

but just in case.

Understood.

I will protect you with my life.

To the departing migratory birds

-That was fun!

-I liked that!

Now, we have a last-minute guest.

Lieutenant general of the Amidonian army,

Margarita Wonder.

Her song is Amidonia's national anthem,

"Through the Valley of Goldoa."

Press on, O horses

Climbing over

The hill of our fallen comrades

Press on, O brave warriors

To become

The earth of the land beyond

I showed my true grit as an Amidonian.

Now, behead me.

Why?

I sang the national anthem of Amidonia.

On top of that,

the song is about taking back

our land from Elfrieden!

Can you allow something so outrageous?

What about it?

There is no law

in the Elfrieden Kingdom forbidding

you from singing foreign anthems.

What makes a good country?

That is not an easy question to answer.

But at least I can say

that a country where you can sing freely

must be a good country.