Chapter 56: Uncertainty
RoBlue321
El Tigre
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Uncertainty
Henriette was a woman of great patience and high mental strength. Or at least that's what she wanted to think.
Life had been hard on her, and yet that hadn't been enough to break her. The fact she was born in a noble family of medium influence over the nation had not prevented them from suffering some attacks over the years.
One of her brothers had died... and it turned out that her other brother had murdered him, hiring some bandits to do the dirty job, in order to become the next one in the succession line that involved owning all the properties of the Haraldsen house.
She had been kidnapped once to obtain an extremely high reward from her father if he wanted to see her alive again.
Long after she became queen of Askr, the former Emperor of Embla decided it was a good time to initiate his plans to expand the size of his empire for glory.
Her first son died when she was still very young due to a rather severe illness.
And then her husband also ended up going to the other world as well.
Something that maybe was the reason that kept her going regardless of everything was that she always seemed to be able to get something good or at least one lesson out of each event... no matter how small it could be. When she, without many options other options anyway, became the leader of her household because of being the only one left, she put all her effort into improving the local economy.
When she was locked in that dark room, her future husband along with several soldiers had come to her rescue. She ended up coming out unharmed and in the arms of a true blue prince.
When Gustav took the arms to fight Emperor Hiram, she had stayed behind to administer the kingdom. If there was any doubt left that she had the experience and capacity to be Askr's queen, they were totally dispelled afterward.
The death of her first son made her understand that she should not neglect Alfonse and Sharena. As a result, they had a strong strong bond and stable health.
Regarding her husband… she was still not sure what good thing she could learn from this matter… but she had faith that he was fine, wherever he was.
And now was the day to deal with another problem. In front of her was the principal chancellor.
"Luckily, reclaiming our territory has given our people confidence in the future and they are calmer now. However, it seems that those who lived in the frontier area do not understand that it is still too early to start rebuilding their homes. " the man commented.
"It's comprehensible..." The queen sighed. "We can increase their patience by giving a little financial aid."
"It is the simplest and most effective way to solve the situation." The Chancellor nodded, then reread the newly arrived letter.
"And now... comes a predicament... certainly concerning."
Henriette raised her eyebrow "Is it anything more worrisome than our current war?"
The Chancellor scratched his head. "Not quite. At least not soon, but in the future, it can be problematic."
Henriette narrowed her eyes slightly and gave a signal with her hand to tell the man to continue. "While it is true that the population is receiving the inventions obtained thanks to the legendary hero in a positive way and the soldiers and generals trust him more despite the fact that, according to his own words, he was little less than an ordinary villager without any previous combat experience… all this has had another effect on the public opinion."
Henriette used her index finger to hit slowly the arm of her throne. "And that consequence is?"
"It has severely affected the public image of Prince Alfonse." the man tried to do not to look at the queen in the eyes.
Henriette had to swallow hard.
After it was revealed it was her son the one who opened the gates, the criticisms had rained down over the royal family like a tempest, becoming a new trial to overcome. The subjets her people commented about was both her ability to educate her son and the prince's competence to be the future king.
Some commented that perhaps his innocence and fatal mistake was the result of the lacking of a father figure in his teenage years to guide him appropriately... but others were not so willing to forgive, especially the nobles.
"How is that?"
"Mainly, the fact that someone from another world had to come to solve a crisis caused by a member of royalty makes the successor of King Gustav look even worse than he was when all this began, it was bad enough that his majesty Gustav had the opportunity to only demonstrate his capabilities as general rather than politician."
The Chancellor sighed heavily. "While the prince tries to repair his image, Kiran only shows that people underestimate him. Some of our subjects rumor that, in a scenario similar to how you became the head of the house Haraldsen, you will decide to give Kiran the standard hero reward for him to become the next king of Askr in place of prince Alfonse."
Henriette had to rub her chin as she looked away in concern. "That is certainly something to be concerned about."
"What are your thoughts regarding this, your majesty?" if the man was honest, those rumors seemed mildly credible, one way or another.
"I have spoken with Kiran Enríquez just a couple of times, but what I noticed was that his interest in life seems to be only inventing and replicating things. When I tried to offer him a position as a nobleman along with funds for his job, he told me he wasn't going to sign the paper. He seemed to claim that being a noble would take time away he may as well spend in his lab."
"Is the young hero more interested in investigating than ruling?" one would think that anyone would accept an option to increase their position in the hierarchy of the nation.
"That seems to be the case. Also, I'm afraid I don't know him well enough to agree to offer him my daughter's hand in marriage. I owe him my life, that is true, but I still know very little about him." That last part had bothered her a bit. Although she felt surprised that Sharena was not interested in Kiran despite worshiping that legend of the legendary hero who came from another world since the time when she was still an adorable little girl, Henriette was not going to force her daughter to marry him for a political issue.
Sharena was not an object, much less a prize!
"I mean, people also seem to forget that, although Kiran Enríquez is a good... scientist, as he calls himself, it does not mean that he is a good king. If we consider the claims his world is very different from ours, for him to be able to rule appropriately, it would require a lot of training."
Perhaps in some other Askr, Kiran would become king, but in this timeline that event was unlikely.
"What do you plan to do then?"
The queen closed her eyes. "There is still enough time for Alfonse to show that he learned from his mistakes. Even in the worst scenario... we can say that his amnesia made him forget what he did and that he cannot be judged for it."
"A risky move... but if it works... I understand." The Chancellor nodded.
"So, is that all?"
"That's all, although I would recommend commenting on this to our prince. Hiding it would only make it worse. " The chancellor gave an opinion on the situation.
"That was what I had in mind. If you could tell the guard to call my son right away, that would help a lot. " The queen nodded.
"I will do it without hesitation." Then he bowed and proceeded to leave. "It is my honor to serve."
With that, the queen sighed in frustration... so she waited until her son arrived.
"So, you want to go?" Anna rubbed her chin. She wasn't surprised, rather, it seemed odd that he hadn't said this earlier.
"Only temporarily," Roy assured, sighing. "I just want to go see my wife... and let's say that seeing another version of her here makes it more difficult than it should be..." Of course, there was one other thing he missed doing… but it was best left unsaid.
"Also, it's been a while since I left. It is possible that now that everything is a little fixed... " Anna waved her hand for him to continue.
"Consider the chance that I will return with reinforcements. Joining part of our army to Askr's would be beneficial."
"That," Anna's eyes widened slightly. "It would be a good thing indeed. I mean, Veronica seems to have some support from Nohr. We also need our allies from another world. "
"Even if I can't bring many soldiers, I'll try to determine what else I might bring that is useful to our cause." Roy nodded slowly.
"Your help will always be appreciated." Anna and the hero then shook hands.
"I will try to return in less than half a month," Roy explained. While Anna wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of two heroes being absent, at least she could be sure that Roy would be safe where he was going.
The other absent one, on the other hand, no one knew when he would appear.
The boat trip was more relaxing than she had originally thought, the waves of the sea generated that feeling of calm in her heart.
However, something that was partially annoying to her was knowing that even if she went outside, there was nowhere to actually go. She could only walk the deck of the ship over and over again.
Not that she felt claustrophobic, no, there was enough space… but that strange feeling was still present.
However, what really concerned her was the lack of entertainment activities. There was still a long time before they reached the shores of Askr and spending every day there could get very boring.
Fjorm was a person who felt that she couldn't have fun entirely alone. Without her siblings around, the only option she had to play with was little Fenri.
Even though there weren't truly many places where to hide on the ship, it was fun when he thought she didn't have the slightest idea where to find him.
"Avez-vous une idée de l'endroit où il se trouve? (Do you have any idea about where could he be?)" Fjorm had to suppress a giggle just like the guard, who pretended to have trouble remembering seeing the little prince dressed in green.
"Je ne suis pas sur… je dois me m'excuser, princesse. Je suis un garde mais j'ai oublié de faire attention (I'm not sure... I must apologize, princess. I'm a guard but I forgot paying attention)."
Fjorm pretended to be sad.
"Mmmh, c'est comment s'il est un fantôme… (it's like he's a ghost...)"
She could perfectly hear Fenri's giggle behind the guard, near a box.
"Je vais chercher á autre lieu alors. (I'm going to look to other place then)"
With this, the princess proceeded to "withdraw" from the place. Fenri then decided to try going out for a bit. He and the guard gave each other a smile... but then he was slightly scared because he felt arms lifting him.
"Alors tu étais là! (here you are!)"
"Awww..."
The Nilfian princess giggled when the boy gave his resigned look but smiled again. Fjorm thought that at least it was nice to see the boy smile after so long.
"Maintenant c'est à mon tour de me cacher (Now it's my turn to hide)" She giggled as Fenri covered her eyes and started counting.
"Un, deux, trois… (one, two, three)"
Fjorm decided to hide below deck.
While being there, she thought about what kind of problems her brother must be facing. By now he should have managed to contain the invasion and begin to reconquer Nidavel.
She just had to hand over the refugees… and maybe, if all went totally well, return with reinforcements from Askr.
"B-but I'm not a heroine!" After being able to reassure the young woman, Raigh felt a little more relaxed. He was still cursing his luck for summoning this girl instead of something decent... but at least he had already managed to make her stop crying.
"Trust me, I'm the first one to notice it. I highly doubt that any kind of hero will run off like a damsel in distress. " Raigh growled as he sighed. "So... what now?..." Bernadetta gulped.
Raigh, having already removed the Breidablik from his pocket again during the explanation, simply pointed at it with his free hand.
"Well, I can send you back. In theory, it will be as if you never left in the first place. " Raigh then searched for that button that was supposed to switch from summoning mode to un-summon mode.
Upon pressing the button, the weapon made a rather curious sound. Raigh had no idea what components that relic might have inside, but something probably started to go in reverse or something.
"Now I just have to aim at you with this, and voila. You will return home without problems." However, when Raigh placed his gun in position… he found that the girl had moved aside a little.
Raigh narrowed his eyes again. "This is not going to kill you." He then tried to point at her again. And... again, the girl moved away.
"Um... um..."
"Listen..." Raigh tried to control his stress again. "If you don't cooperate then you can't leave."
Bernadetta began to play with her index fingers and bow her head. "Well... I..."
Raigh crossed his arms as he waited for an explanation. "I just warn you that I am not going to wait forever."
"Well..." the girl started shaking a lot again. "Would being here allow me to be... away... from my f-f-father?"
Raigh didn't say anything for a few seconds... and then he pushed the button on the Breidablik again to turn off the un-summoner mode.
"In theory, you are on a different continent and even a different timeline. So the answer is yes. "
"Eh?" The girl raised her eyebrow in confusion.
The black mage crossed his arms. "The ritual is complicated, if I explain it to you in detail you won't understand it. The point is, yeah, you're a long way from home right now."
Bernadetta began to walk in circles as she seemed to be thinking. Raigh rubbed his face knowing this would take a while.
Bernadetta considered many things.
If she returned, she would have to continue living with her father... and certainly, spending hours tied to a chair was already something she could not bear.
But if she didn't, she would be alone in a place she didn't know… without money, without her slight authority as a noble… without a safe room where she could hide from the dangers of the world.
Why was life so cruel to her?
And she started crying again.
Raigh had to take a deep breath to relax and not explode from the stress. He then placed a hand on the girl's shoulder.
"Can you explain to me why you would want to be away from your father?" Although if he had to guess based on things that had already happened, his best hypothesis was that this girl had a past somewhat similar to Azurita's.
Seeing that Raigh was taking a long time to return, Alfonse had decided that he would take Leif to the castle's training ground for the order. Later they would talk to Raigh about this mysterious girl.
"Something Prince Seliph asked me when he thought further about the fact that this moment of the time is the future seen from his perspective was about the historical records regarding the battles that led to him becoming the new king of Grannvale."
Leíf scratched the back of his neck. "I suppose it was only natural for an idea this clever to come from his mind."
Alfonse shrugged. "If you plan to do the same… I can explain several things to you. However, always remember that, given the existence of infinite timelines, some details may vary."
"That's something I do not understand." Leif raised an eyebrow and gave a doubtful look. "What's that about infinite timelines?"
"I will explain it to you using an example that appears in my mind ..." The prince of Askr then frowned. "I don't remember where, when, or who explained it to me... but I'm sure it's appropriate for the situation." Alfonse sighed, not remembering anything about his childhood was sometimes annoying... although it had also had a curious effect... not remembering the innocence of childhood... it was as if that innocence had disappeared from his personality.
Some of his most recent memories, such as when he ran into that masked man and demanding things from him that... if he thought about it now deeply, the masked man would not care much about whatever Alfonse told him... it was a waste of time even to say those words...
In hindsight, that was very silly and childish.
At least he thought it was due to this lack of innocence… if there was another cause, he wasn't sure what it could be.
"Is something wrong?" Leif asked as Alfonse had been quiet for a while. The prince shook his head. "Is nothing. Anyway, I was telling you... ah, yes! The example is simple. Tossing a coin, it is always equally likely the result is gonna be head or tail, correct?"
"Right." Leif wasn't sure where this was going, but better wait before asking again.
"What happens is that both results are a reality, in worlds, two worlds. Two worlds that are identical, but are differentiated by that event. "
Leif had to glare in confusion and cross his arms.
"No offense... but that sounds crazy."
Alfonse shrugged. "You were summoned to a totally different place, which is a totally different continent, and without having to move a single step... why does the idea of other worlds sound so strange?"
Leif raised his index finger… only to have to lower it. "I guess you have a point..."
"And since everything requires possibilities, there are infinite worlds created from these decisions." Alfonse finished his explanation and realized that they were almost there… and that he could see Seliph training.
"Oh, look who's here." Alfonse pointed with his finger at the prince of light.
"That over there is Seliph."
"Oh!" Although the Prince of Leonstar knew of Seliph, the two had never really met in person.
"I suppose you two will have a lot to discuss." Alfonse prepared to leave. "It was nice meeting you, now if you'll excuse me, I must go back to speak with Raigh."
"Ah yes, I understand." Leif waved goodbye to the Prince of Askr as he started walking in the direction of the other blue prince of the place.
He found himself for a moment with no exact idea of how to start that conversation...
Perhaps it was the fact that he knew that, given his cousin's lineage, he would never really become half as capable as Seliph was… but it took him a moment to decide to speak.
"Lord Seliph." The prince of light stopped the cut he was about to make on the training dummy to turn around.
"Um... I'm afraid I don't know who you are."
"It's natural, as far as I can guess, our meeting happening here in Askr instead of our continent is a rare event..."
those were the thoughts of the prince of Leonstar, he was considering the issue of "multiple worlds"
"Are you from Jugdral?"
"Yes, more specifically from Leonstar, my name is Leif Faris Claus. I am the son of Quan."
Seliph rubbed his chin as his eyes widened. "Oh, oooh ... so you are my cousin?"
"Yes, I am also Ethlyn's son after all." Leif nodded.
Seliph gave a slight nod several times, then the two exchanged a handshake.
"It is an honor to meet you."
"The honor is mine." Leif replied.
"It feels good not being the only one here. I mean, until very recently I was the only one who had been summoned from our continent." Seliph sighed and shrugged. "I felt a little lonely." he then smiled.
"I can imagine that didn't feel particularly good." Leif gave a little laugh. "It is strange that we are considered legendary heroes." Leif commented. "It's... flattering... but awkward." Seliph agreed. "Given what you say, I guess is a fair assumption that you haven't done anything you were told you will do either." Seliph quickly deduced.
"Well, we have many opportunities here to prepare ourselves better." Leif shrugged.
Then the prince of light remembered something ... that made him swallow hard. "Um ... how much has Prince Alfonse told you?"
"Not much, just that I'm going to help you free our continent from the rule of the empire. Why?" Leif raised an eyebrow.
"Um ... so he didn't tell you anything about the princess of Thracia?" Seliph considered for a moment if he should reveal this to his cousin so soon...
"What happens with her?" Leif wasn't even sure he had known that King Travant had a daughter. "Is she a strong opponent? Is she trying to 'join us' just to betray us or something?"
"Eh… no, the important detail is that she actually is not Travant's daughter. He "adopted" her... yeah, that's one way of putting it."
Seliph felt that he had to be careful.
Leif closed his eyes trying to think... "I don't understand why that detail is important... but I suppose that since we are talking about things in the future, it is something that will make sense once we get there..."
Seliph was silent for a moment, which caused Leif to start having more ideas on his mind.
"Although if I have to guess, I imagine what happens is that we use that detail to convince her to join our side."
Seliph had to scratch his hair. He wasn't entirely wrong. "Well, actually, yes..."
"It would certainly help a bit, perhaps causing some Thracian soldiers to decide to switch sides as well." Leif smiled. "But… why is it that something so difficult to tell me? She… I don't know, will she become my wife in the future or something like that? "
Seliph had to clench his teeth. "No! No! It's not that... and I highly doubt that you wanted to have such a relationship with her."
Leif crossed his arms. "So?"
Seliph braced himself and sighed. "You see... the moment and place of her "adoption" were the same ones where and when Quan was executed..."
Leif blinked.
"The princess Altena of Thracia... is actually the princess of Leonstar... she is your sister..." Seliph looked away...
...
...
...
Leif's face twisted in horror. "W-wh-what?!"
Askr still had a small army despite the great efforts to rebuild it to the size it was before the previous war.
It didn't help that Askr did not need a gigantic army to be able to deal with the bandits who might be hiding in the mountains.
As a result, Askr could not keep an eye on all the portals that were opened.
They could only guard those who were closest to the area dominated by the Emblians.
And since there were no records of something worrisome coming out of them since, in general, they were not kept open for more than 3 months... there was no one around when an army began to cross from the World of Mystery.
It was an army that was not very big, and its leader did not know this new continent at all. However, there were some Emblian soldiers that they had captured who they could interrogate to know in which direction to proceed.
Well, I managed to complete this before going to eat some meals! nice!
The idea of people thinking bad about Alfonse because of Kiran's actions comes from something that SousChefSean wrote in his story (Journey Through Pressure) that makes so much sense. I'm not gonna explain it to do not ruin that part of the fanfic for people who have not read it yet, but I just want to ensure that the first one who came up with the idea is SousChefSean. I just included a similar concept because, as I said, it's very realistic and makes so much sense.
In retrospect, I should have included more scenes with people speaking badly of Alfonse since the chapter where Kiran attended that reunion with the nobles and tacticians.
The Standard Hero Reward... the daughter of the king and becoming the next king... it's a trope so used that it has become like a Cancer. Let's say I included that thing more for the sake of just making fun of the cliche idea of shipping Kiran with Sharena than anything else.
I know Henriette's back story is not exactly very original, but she's not a very relevant character anyway. I just needed something that worked.
Don't worry, either the next chapter or the one that follows the next already start with another world. The world of Revelations... because spending time with Nohr and Hoshido as separated worlds would cost innecessary time... I mean, the arc of Muspell needs to begin soon!
By the way, the term Prince Charming is known usually in Spanish as: Príncipe Azul (Blue Prince). I like to think that, because in the FE world there are many princes who fought for justice and most of them are blue-haired, the concept there would also be said that way XD.
