***Arc 9 One Who Sent Off, Chapter 217 The Banquet’s Flower***

“I thought there was going to be some sort of happening.”

Kalua laughed amusedly and put a piece of steak in her mouth.

Wearing a crimson dress that she rented, she gracefully carries herself, her hair gathered and her face enhanced with makeup, making her look like some noble lady.

The suddenly silent hall and the apron dress at the center.

She thought Krische was going to start something, but it turned out it was just a naming ceremony.

Kalua found it amusing.

“You...”

It was this Kalua that started it all.

Mia, dressed in a white dress that covered her thin chest with red roses, rubbed her temples and glared at Kalua.

"...Whose fault do you think it is?"

“Mia?”

“Wrong!”

Dagra and his adjutant Mia were called from the Black Flag Special Force.

Aleha was promoted to corps commander, and Kalua was recognized for her military exploits in hunting the Suiko

Generally, the people invited to the victory banquet were not many.

Either they were ranked corps commanders or above, or those who had achieved noteworthy achievement.

Mia was in the state of being timid in a lavish banquet that even battalion commanders rarely invited to, but Kalua was acting as usual.

"Well, let’s don’t mind the little things. It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing, so you have to enjoy it."

“You...”

"...Well, it's too late to say this now."

Dagra said, exasperated by Kahlua's words.

Acting as a watchdog to the good-looking Kalua and Mia――Dagra also quietly sipped wine while being mindful of the black and silver embroidered military uniform he was not used to wearing.

When he was a centurion, he never had a chance to wear a military uniform, and the same thing went for after he became a company commander.

Dagra, who usually wore leather armor, a deep blue shirt, and pants, felt somehow out of place in this tight-fitting military uniform.

"...Commander, it doesn't suit you after all."

"Shut up. I know."

After he became a company commander, I bought at least one formal attire. His wife thought it looked nice and was very happy about it, but his child was quick to point out that it didn't look good on him.

He himself agreed.

For example, formal attire like this suits Nozan and Aleha well, but military formal attire was basically one with elegant embroidery.

There was no such thing as formal military attire that suits a fierce-looking person.

A shaved head and a rugged face――he wasn't ugly by any means, and he could be called to have a manly face, but at the very least it didn't look good in a military uniform.

For most events, it's okay to wear armor, but when it comes to banquets, that was not the case, and Dagra feels indescribably comfortable.

He had already greeted Selene, Krische, Dougleen, and Kolkis, and also had finished his conversation here.

Although it was an honor to be invited, it still felt uncomfortable.

Hoping to finish the party quickly, he took a sip of his drink and looked around the hall.

“By the way, Aleha Corps Commander?”

“Ah, just now he said he’s going outside.”

He moved to another country and rose through the ranks, this sounded good.

But he had fought with his former countrymen and killed his own brother.

He was somewhat absentminded.

“...He must have a lot on his mind.”

“So General Remin is in military uniform.”

“Y-yes...well."

Alberinea, who said so, was in an apron dress.

Although she was a woman, it was quite normal for Tekrea to wear a military uniform as she was a soldier.

In fact, it was much more strange that Alberinea, who was second only to the Marshal, was dressed as a servant.

Alberinea, who tilted her head curiously even though she didn’t have any doubt about herself, was Alberinea through and through.

"Dresses don't suit me."

She was tall for a woman.

Her expression was grim, with wrinkles between her eyebrows.

She was not bad looking. If she played a male role in an opera, for example, she would look good.

However, as expected, there was nothing about her that was pretty as a woman.

"Hmm, so General Remin doesn't like dresses too."

Alberinea traced her lovely lips with her fingertips, looking to her side.

It was a servant she had seen several times.

Alberinea's attendant――She only knew that her name was Bery.

But in many ways, she was a famous servant.

Not just her infatuation with the lovely Alberinea, but also due to the recent assassination incident, the visit of the ancient dragon, and her deep involvement in all these events.

Alberinea had challenged the ancient dragon just to save this servant.

At least, everyone who was there knew that.

If one was a noble like Tekrea, you would know that she had killed 17 of the great nobles in retaliation.

Ostensibly it was an audience――the Queen had told them not to stir up unnecessary gossip and disturb the country, and now it was being forgotten from people's hearts.

Still, there were probably people like Tekrea who understood all the circumstances.

Having the servant wear a dress, and standing next to her wearing an apron dress.

With her left arm entwined in a pampering manner――surely the truth to Alberinea was all there.

She was neither proud nor boastful of her extraordinary feats on the battlefield.

She was just a young girl.

‘――Let's forget it’, Tekrea quietly closed her eyes.

No matter what, the war would have happened.

And their victory would not have been possible without her.

That was all there is to it.

The "young" servant in the black indigo dress――Bery was beautiful.

Her embarrassed gestures and expressions, as if embarrassed by Alberinea's gaze, were charming and lovely.

Like Alberinea, Bery was slender and small, with large eyes and ample breasts.

She was close to Tekrea’s ideal.

Speaking of personal preference, she would have liked her to be a little taller, but perhaps it's precisely because she lacks that height that the mismatch looked good.

The reason why she still found her attractive even though she was next to Alberinea, the crystal of beauty, compared to something perfect, an imperfect one felt more approachable.

“You don’t like to dress too?”

"...Yes, Duke Remin. I don't have many opportunities to wear dresses..."

Ambiguously, the red-haired servant smiled a little troubledly.

She pulled her shawl back and her cheeks blushing lightly, the way she looked was indescribable.

"...You look good in it. If you say you don't like it, then I'm even less qualified to wear dresses."

"Ehehe, that's right. That dress suits Bery very well."

"Th-thank you very much……"

Alberinea gleefully hooked her arm with Bery’s.

Bery was becoming more and more embarrassed, and that charming gesture seemed to stir up her desire to protect her.

Not only her appearance but also her personality.

They must have been born differently.

If Tekrea had been different――if her 5 shaku 7 sun tall body had been three sun smaller, for example things might have been a little different.

Or if she had been the younger sister instead of the eldest daughter.

She started her career in the martial arts early on, and it had been twenty years since she stopped wearing dresses.

If she had worn a dress even once during that time, it might have been a little different.

"That's just how good it suits you. It's better to enjoy glamorous things while you're still young. Of course, considering your position as a servant, it might be difficult but..."

“Young...”

“Hmm?”

“N-no, nothing. Thank you very much.”

Bery bowed her head with a face that seemed to want to say something, and Tekrea tilted her head.

‘Well, it’s fine’, she returned her gaze to Krische and saluted.

“I just wanted to greet and say thank you for the help on the battlefield. I apologize for taking up so much of your time on such an occasion."

After saying her greetings, she left the place.

Milcarz, the old adjutant who was silently waiting behind her, spoke.

"Ojou-sama"

“...I told you to stop with the Ojou-sama right.”

"No... if I remember correctly, Argan-sama is thirty this year. If she can be called young, then I think there’s still time for Ojou-sama to wear dresses."

Tekrea froze.

The balcony is lit by a starry moon.

He had always not been a big fan of such glamorous occasions.

Aleha, cooling off in the night breeze, absentmindedly gazes at the sky, sipping his wine.

He was neither weak nor strong when it came to alcohol.

He felt a little drunk, probably because he drank without eating much.

“Your Excellency”

"...?"

When he heard a voice and turned around, there was a woman in military uniform.

He had seen her face briefly at the encampment.

It was Tekrea Remin――a central general.

“Not used to the Alberan feast?”

“Not, but...I've always been uncomfortable with such glamorous events.”

His eyes were wet in spite of the darkness of the night.

His footing was solid, but he was probably quite drunk. Even in the dim light, she could see that his cheeks were stained red.

"What a strange coincidence, I'm the same way. Swinging a sword suits me better."

“That’s surely a strange coincidence, it’s the same for me.”

Seeing her stirring her glass, he poured some wine from the wine bottle that was on the desk.

She accepted it, but she snatched the wine bottle from Aleha's hand and held it to her mouth.

Aleha smiled bitterly and emptied his sake cup.

And he held it out to her.

"I was curious about the general who was once the commander in Elsren, coming to Alberan. I've heard of Aleha Sarchenka’s martial prowess.”

"...I'm honored. However, we suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the previous General Christand and Krische-sama. The prowess you heard about is not true."

"Still, your skill in defeating General Carmeda in the east is something to be proud of. You should be careful, that unnecessary humility will end up making light of the person you defeated."

Aleha lowered her head to apologize to her, and Tekrea smiled bitterly.

"No, my bad. It's my bad habit to speak too strongly...The four generals of Alberan, north, south, east and west, have always been the best generals, respected by all the warriors of Alberan. Now that you have defeated one of them, that's something to be proud of."

‘Of course, it was not something that could be talked about openly here’, Tekrea continued.

"The opponent's I lost to were the hero Christand and the current Alberinea, opponents I would never be ashamed of. ...When I saw this battle, I thought ‘From now on, there will be no one who can defeat them’."

"That's true. We fought together in three battles but..."

Aleha narrowed his eyes.

“The strategy seems unconventional but it’s straightforward——a kind of orthodox method. However, that person can create new perspectives and techniques. As long as Krische-sama exists, no country or sage will be able to catch up with him. …It’s like the moon that can be seen up close.”

He reached out his hand to look at the chipped moon and laughed.

The more he stretched out his hand, the more the outline of the moon reflected in the distance.

All countries would be trying to find out the secret behind Alberan's great victory.

But even if they caught it, there it was, the shadow of the moon in the distance.

"My current goal is to see how close I can get to that goal with my future training. A few years ago, I was just hoping for a career advancement, but now I've found something more."

"…Hoo."

Tekrea asked, leaning her back against the railing.

"Alberinea is like that...I don't want to pour cold water on you."

Ahead of the wine in her hand——Alberinea in an apron dress walking down the hall.

And next to her was a beautiful servant wearing a dress that made her look young and pretty.

Alberinea looked much happier and more joyful than she had on the battlefield.

"If you don't mind, I would like to hear from you about the battle of Alberinea. Half the reason I took an interest in your excellency is because of that, and the other half is over there."

"Of course. Actually, I was a little nervous, wondering why a general would call out to me."

"You’re saying you're under suspicion?"

"It's only natural. However, I'm relieved to know you're like-minded."

Aleha held out a sake cup, and Tekrea lightly tapped it with hers, just enough to touch it.

"I guess that's what warriors like. I'm sorry for being a woman who doesn't even wear dresses, but I'd appreciate it if you could hang out with me for a little while."

“Haha, being a beautiful woman who can wear a military uniform is a greater honor than being a pretty flower.”

Tekrea stiffened slightly, and Aleha tilted his head slightly.

"...?"

"...No, there were just some insects."

Tekrea slapped her own cheek and averted her gaze.

Though suspicious, Aleha decided not to worry about it and opened his mouth.

"Let's start with the battle of Gulshan..."

The banquet continued in splendor for a while.

Their conversation continued throughout the entire time, and Milcarz, Tekrea’s adjutant, who watched from the hall, was said, with handkerchief in his hands, wiping away his tears.