Глава 13

Now then, oh great one, can you tell me—

How I might save myself?

There it is. You haven't a clue yourself.

Let me by.

You really won't turn back?

I won't.

Then I can't say I wish you well.

Your hands are stained with the blood of so many, with the blood of my friends, and you carry on with such despicable decisions.

René Lettou!

That'll do, then. Run along now, the Sarkaz are coming.

I still have... to say goodbye.

Ces Lingones baignent nos yeux de larmes♪

Le champ de bataille est chargé d'amertume et de peine♪

Mais ce jour viendra, c'est certain♪

Pour juger à mort les agresseurs♪

Pour juger à mort les agresseurs♪

A 'Vieux Vanguard' living in the city.

Why is he the first thing to come to my mind in this moment?

...Name! Rank! Unit!

Your baton is pressed against my waist rather harshly, sir.

Fermez-la! Report... Name, rank, and unit! Soldat!

Lingones Youth Vanguards, 2e Régiment de la Garde Sautante, Caporal Lettou!

My... unit?

Yes, your unit.

I've... never seen you... before.

You have, you've just forgotten, sir.

Have I...?

L'Empereur, Sa Majesté, he ordered me to recover here... but... I want to know... what's happening... on the front lines.

Le Roi-Sorcier... the wicked Witch King... did our fleet... destroy him?

I saw it on television... the Victorian Duke with the great... big... HUGE beard... his army!

Do they... wish to betray Sa Majesté... our great Emperor... they will stab him in the back... too?

Sir, Londinium has fallen.

C'est bien! Good!

I'll be promoted... to the Vieux Vanguard! You... it's not your time yet... you still need... to prove yourself!

He's nearly ninety years old. He's been not-entirely-there for quite some time, forgetting nearly everything.

For decades, his mind has remained in the golden age when the Gaulishmen joined Corsica I's march into Leithanien.

The nurses always said he had only a year to live, but he's still here.

He's lived to see Gaul become history.

He's lived to Londinium teetering on the edge of her grave.

Before I left the Defense Forces, I issued one last order, to guarantee the safety of this sanatorium.

This is the only thing I did for myself in my entire long service to the Forces.

I brought you a Rheims Champagne, from Lingones. Your favorite. Have a seat, won't you?

Hm...

A fine drink, Caporal, mm...

Ces Lingones baignent nos yeux de larmes♪

Le champ de bataille est chargé d'amertume et de peine♪

...Pour juger à mort les agresseurs...♪

When you sing that song, it's as if there never was any pain, as if you never aged a day.

...Notre drapeau sera toujours glorieux♪

I've never seen Lingones.

You told me again and again about those magnificent halls, the flourishing road networks...

...Do you remember Golding, the girl who visited you with me so many years ago?

She's dead.

She died for this cruel, unshakeable, bloodstained world.

And I'm one of the murderers responsible for it all.

I don't know... what to feel for her.

But she's gone. She's out of my sight, and she'll certainly never see me anymore.

I... I'm frightened, sir.

A girl called Amiya says that all I've done was done out of cowardice.

I once confessed to Golding that my only goal was to survive the ruin to come.

But I still hope...

Even if it's just a pretext, I still hope—

That from the ruins, a new Gaulishman will rise...

No, that's not it.

I wish Golding could keep on teaching the children, under the sunshine, among the fragrance of the flowers.

Her persistence was truly beautiful.

But me, I'm the one who... I'm...

I've done all I can, sir. It's tiring.

Do you think we still have a future?

He'd fallen asleep minutes ago.

Right then.

I draw my saber. A sword that once belonged to a Gaulishman.

I think... it might be better to let him remain in that dream before the Sarkaz force their way in.

At least it'll be a splendid dream.

But me... despicable man that I am, dare not reach out to pollute—

The blood of the aged Youth Vanguard splatters my hands.

The Prince of Blood himself, the Sanguinarch of Vampires, looks silently at the extravagant decor of the Victorian palace.

The expression on his face could be described as... serene.

You came, Lettou.

Here I thought you'd find somewhere to hide.

No, of course not.

I was always going to come find Your Highness.

You seem spirited today, I'm pleased. Ever since that old Gaulish teacher of yours died, you've been quite the buzzkill.

I made a bet with my children, they wagered that you were about to die.

But I believed in you, Lettou.

Have a drink with me, to the defeat of your enemies, the death of the nation of Victoria.

I'll begin the ritual myself, bestowing the most ancient curse, the most tragic end.

And so I will be leaving soon. Even my own kin don't enjoy such an honor, you should be grateful.

You know, Your Highness...

By the time I was born, Gaul's capital had already been razed by the Duke of Wellington and his despicable accomplices.

A city annihilated, as one breathes a sigh.

Now it seems you will do the same to Londinium.

Will you weep for her?

I just... didn't expect it.

Duke Wellington dismantled Lingones, pulling those mobile plates apart. Heh, so silly, so boring, the Victorians.

Would you like to settle the blood debt with your own hands? I admire your persistence.

I could grant you such an opportunity.

Your Highness is most magnanimous.

I bow deeply, but I feel his gaze lingering on me.

Ah... pathetic.