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ABZ 21
It took me a moment to understand what Lumi was saying.
"Ah...."
So, Uven had apparently been complaining about me.
He had clearly asked me to catch birds because there wasn't enough food, but he had apparently told others that I was being uncooperative.
"......"
With furrowed brows and nervously picking at his fingertips, Uven looked embarrassed.
Heresdon was watching me, waiting for my answer, and Lilia looked troubled.
Idorian was observing me and Uven, and even Lumi was quietly staring at Uven.
'Does everyone think it's my fault?'
If the claim that there wasn't enough food was a lie, then they would have found me sitting in the grass all day, doing nothing but catching birds, and that would have made me seem uncooperative.
"Princess Consort, Uven didn't mean any harm...."
"I understand. I'll be more careful next time."
I cut off Lilia, who had started to speak on behalf of Uven, who looked embarrassed and had lowered his head, and nodded.
Lumi, who had been sitting next to Uven and watching him, suddenly turned to me.
He frowned as if he hadn't expected me to say that.
And Uven....
"But it wasn't a complaint about the food. I just thought it would be nice if we could all eat meat together."
When he met my eyes, he scowled and turned away.
Did Uven do this because he hated me and wanted others to hate me too?
"I won't skip work anymore."
"You weren't skipping work, were you?"
Just as I was about to wrap things up, Heresdon added.
"The Princess Consort has been fetching water every morning. I think that's enough for one person."
He had apparently seen me getting up earlier than everyone else to fill the water for the day, and he spoke as if he was defending me.
"Uven, you mean the Princess Consort was doing that, not you?"
Lilia, surprised by the revelation, looked down at Uven.
"Well, that is...."
The boy looked at Heresdon and Lilia, and finally lowered his head without saying a word.
He had apparently told Lilia that he was the one who had been filling the water.
If I wanted to, I could reveal the lies and slander that Uven had made against me right now, but....
His flushed face and the way he was nervously picking at his fingertips caught my eye.
"No. I did that with Uven."
"...I see."
Heresdon, who had reacted briefly to my words when I covered up the boy's mistake once again, turned to Idorian.
He apparently wanted to hear about the reason we had gathered in the drawing room.
"His Imperial Majesty has decided to mobilize the Imperial Army."
Idorian, who had been looking at me for a moment, finally opened his mouth.
When Idorian said he would check on the safety of Lilia's family, I looked at Uven, who was sitting next to Lilia.
The boy was looking down, and I wondered if he was in pain because he was thinking about the absence of his family.
Uven's hunched shoulders and deeply bowed head did not rise for a long time.
"If we hold on a little longer, we'll be able to return to the capital."
"...No. It will take a long time for the Imperial Army to reach this fortress."
When Idorian conveyed hope in a confident tone, Heresdon, who had been listening quietly, shook his head firmly. He directly refuted Idorian's claim.
"When this crisis first broke out, His Imperial Majesty issued an imperial order to stay far away from the capital, which most likely means that the situation in the capital is more serious than it is here."
Heresdon said, quickly scanning the Emperor's letter.
"I don't know how many of the Imperial Army will survive, but even assuming that the loss of troops wasn't significant, wouldn't it take at least a few months to eliminate all the zombies in the capital?"
At his words, the hope in Lilia's expression waned.
Heresdon, who had been looking around at the people, seemed to have noticed Lilia's expression, but he continued to speak as if he couldn't help it.
"Besides, they attack people in hordes, so it probably won't be easy for the Imperial Army to deal with them either."
He apparently thought that we needed accurate information rather than false hope.
"It will take at least a year to return to the capital."
In the novel, it turned out exactly as Heresdon had said.
"In the worst-case scenario, problems could arise along the way, and the entire Imperial Army could turn into zombies."
At Heresdon's words, Lilia couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.
It seemed as if the anxiety that she had vaguely covered up and not mentioned had come crashing down on her.
"I also think it will take time to return to the capital, as Grand Duke said."
I agreed with Heresdon's words.
Idorian seemed to be taking an optimistic view of the situation and trying to reassure us, but sometimes accurate information gave us more strength to endure than vague hope.
Above all, if we had to live in this fortress for a year, we would have to realistically accept the situation and prepare what we needed.
"No. We'll only be stuck in this fortress for four months at most."
However, Idorian still didn't back down from his opinion.
"His Imperial Majesty said he would mobilize the Imperial Army. That means His Imperial Majesty has determined that there is at least enough military power left to reach this place."
"Your Highness...."
Enough military power to reach this place.
"In that case, regardless of the exact number of troops currently available, the Imperial Army will be able to reach this place in four months."
In any case, the Imperial Army would arrive at this fortress, but why was Idorian so sure that we would be able to leave this fortress in four months?
'He must know how unfavorable the situation is for us. What is he thinking?'
Idorian glanced at me, who was wondering, and continued.
"If we use the method of luring the zombies with blood, as Penelope told us, we'll be able to resolve the situation much more easily."
"Ah...."
Only then did I understand why Idorian was so confident.
He had personally confirmed how strongly the zombies reacted to blood when he had left the fortress to save Lumi.
He apparently judged that the strategy of luring the zombies with blood would also be effective for the Imperial Army's advance.
"Ah, I see!"
Lilia was the first to react to his words. Lilia, who looked surprised and had widened her eyes more than usual, looked back and forth between Idorian and me and nodded.
"...Since we can avoid direct combat, we'll reduce not only the time but also the risk. In that case, as Your Highness said, I think we'll all be on our way to the capital in about four months."
Heresdon, who had been deep in thought with his eyes lowered as if he was calculating for a moment, nodded as if it was a good plan.
"Your Highness, then let's quickly inform His Imperial Majesty of this fact!"
Lilia clasped her hands together as if she was relieved.
'...Four months.'
More than half the time that it took in the original story had been cut short.
If that really happened, I could speed up the development of the cure, so I could return to being human much earlier than I expected.
"Uven, let's hold on a little longer."
Lilia, who smiled brightly as if she was relieved, patted Uven's back lightly.
Uven was still hunched over.
The boy nodded silently and got off the chair.
"Then I have to prepare dinner, so I'll be going."
Uven, who had passively agreed with Lilia's words, got up from his seat first, saying that he would prepare dinner.
Before leaving the room, Uven met my eyes, but the boy quickly left.
For some reason, the fact that he could return to the capital in four months didn't seem to make the boy very happy.
If he returned to the capital, he would be guaranteed safety, and he wouldn't have to fetch water or prepare meals every day like he did now.
'It must be because of his family.'
When I was looking at the door that Uven had left through, Lumi, who was sitting next to me, let out a soft sigh.
When our eyes met, his eyes narrowed slightly.
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