——The report that the captured
"Sorry about that. Couldn't catch up to her even with Holy's bow, and she got away."
"Come on..."
The two hanging their heads and apologating were Holy, bow in hand, and Kuna.
Kuna, with Holy in tow who had brought the bad news, had immediately rushed to the top floor in pursuit of the fleeing Arakiya. And just like when she'd shot Todd from outside the city, they'd combined Holy's brute strength with Kuna's sharp eyes for a long-range sniper shot aimed at the escapee.
However, the escapee had countered their two-person long-range shot, completely outmaneuvered them, and spirited Arakiya away.
"One stayed behind as a decoy, and the other grabbed one of the Nine Divine Generals and took off. If we leave it like this, it's over, right? Let us go after them right away and..."
"—It's pointless."
Kuna's frustrated words, nose scrunched in irritation, were cut off by two voices at once.
Abel and Priscilla, seated at the round table and unmoving, had spoken the same words simultaneously. The two exchanged a brief glance, and then Priscilla closed her eyes.
A gesture of ceding the floor to Abel.
"It was the sort of operation where a small team infiltrates enemy territory, accomplishes a single objective, and extracts. If they split into two pairs, the roles are self-evident. The nerve to decide they could pull it off, and the judgment to actually escape—they both deserve credit. They won't fall for a simple pursuit."
"—But—"
"Arakiya should wake within half a day. Once she does, our pursuers won't stand a chance. If that changes their minds and they return to the city, we'll be finished. And let me be clear—there won't be a second stroke of luck like before. At minimum, I'd call it reckless to field the forces we currently have."
"Grr..."
"Kuna... Abel's got a point, no?"
Abel laid out his reasoning, word by calculated word, wearing down Kuna's resistance. Holy, standing beside her, gently patted Kuna's shoulder in comfort.
As acting chieftain sitting at the round table, this had to sting. But setting aside how blunt he was about it, even Subaru could see Abel had a point.
The Imperial soldiers who'd stormed in wouldn't have undertaken this without a plan. They'd defined an achievable objective within these circumstances, identified their odds, and executed it. Naturally, they wouldn't have committed to a one-way trip—that kind of half-measure wasn't their style. Their escape route had to be planned just as carefully.
"No matter how you dress it up, that person's fate didn't end here. Which means she still has a role to play."
"Priscilla..."
Into the silence that followed, Priscilla tossed those words.
Just moments ago, Subaru had been discussing what to do with Arakiya, so hearing her say this—given that Arakiya hadn't been executed and had been dragged away without even being heard out—left him with a complicated blend of feelings.
But Priscilla, who'd maintained an attitude of complete indifference to Arakiya's life or death—what did she actually think about the escape? Her crimson eyes gave nothing away.
"So, in the end, what's the plan for Arakiya? Just gonna leave her be?"
"...If she's gotten outside the city, there's nothing we can do."
To Al's tone-deaf question, Subaru answered with a bitter expression.
They'd dealt with Kuna and Holy's sniping—the escapees couldn't have been ordinary soldiers. That narrowed the pool of candidates for pursuit, but every capable fighter they had was currently indispensable to
He turned it over in his mind, but Subaru's strengths basically boiled down to surprise attacks. When the other side struck first, he was weak. This episode had laid that bare.
"As a side note—I don't think this is the case, but what about the possibility that the escape is a feint and the enemy is still hiding somewhere in the city?"
"Unlikely. Guaral is renowned as an impregnable fortress city, but besides the two main gates, there are several hidden passages. We had all of them thoroughly sealed off over the past few days."
"Thoroughly..."
"Yes. We anticipated that someone might use the tunnels to infiltrate the city. What we never imagined was that they'd break through head-on with such an audacious stratagem."
They'd been completely outflanked, but Zikr answered calmly without so much as a grimace.
As commander of a fortress city, sealing off the tunnels was basic preparation. But Zikr, who'd been operating on the defensive, had unwittingly given the soldier who'd escaped with Arakiya a tailwind.
"Most likely, the soldier who took the general was a member of the tunnel patrol team. As Lord Abel said, they wouldn't have challenged us without a plan. They must have known they had a viable route, which is what made it possible."
"Those tunnels you sealed—can we figure out their locations from a map or something?"
"...Rendering them onto a blueprint would be possible, but not immediately. The city has fallen, and the soldiers are in turmoil. This level of chaos won't settle easily."
"...It's not like this is a video game, so yeah, fair enough."
If this were a scene from a video game, defeating an enemy commander would mean all their subordinates would neatly switch over to your side. But reality wasn't a game. Even soldiers who could be reduced to numbers in a game still had individual lives.
And just as he'd gotten that far in his thoughts—— "Holy, are you hurt?"
"Hmm? You worried about me, no? Natsumi's so sweet, no?"
At Subaru's question, Holy beamed and raised both arms. She flexed her biceps, showing off her vigor, "Got a few knocks here and there, but nothing serious. I'll heal up quick, no."
"Good. That's a relief. ...But."
As Subaru trailed off and dropped his gaze, Holy tilted her head in confusion. Kuna noticed what was going on behind Subaru's eyes and scratched his head with an "Aah..."
And then—— "Some of the lookouts posted inside buildings got killed. They're all dead—couldn't do a damn thing."
"...How many are we talking? Not 'some,' but specifically?"
"...Seven."
When pressed for an exact count of the fallen, Kuna answered after a moment's hesitation.
That number—seven dead—pierced deep into Subaru's chest. Up on the top floor, among those wounded in Arakiya's attack were Shudrak soldiers and Imperial troops whom
Pushing back the long black wig from his face, Subaru let out a thoroughly wretched sigh.
He'd proudly taken it on, sworn he'd make it happen—the bloodless conquest. The plan to bring Guaral's fall to a successful conclusion. But despite his enthusiasm, it had produced far too many casualties.
His verbal contract was broken, and he'd be branded a massive liar with no excuse to offer. Even if nobody else accused him of being a fraud, Subaru would accuse himself.
What a colossal liar he'd turned out to be— "—'Bloodless conquest,' you say?"
Those words of Subaru's were heard and repeated back as if savoring them.
The one who spoke was Priscilla, who sat with her cheek propped on her fist at the round table. She arched her perfect brows slightly, studying Subaru with a rare expression.
Maintaining that look, Priscilla prefaced with a single word— "I've heard quite the reckless notion. You meant to take the city without spilling blood? During this war, without any force to suppress them?"
"...Yeah, so what? No, you're right—it was wrong. In the end, I failed, so..."
"I'm simply appalled by the foolhardiness of the idea. More than that, I'm astonished that you actually attempted to put that fantasy into practice. —Abel, are you sane?"
When the pointed question turned toward Abel, he answered calmly with his arms crossed.
Subaru's proposed plan had been madness, he admitted. In fact, anyone hearing the overview would naturally think so. But Abel had agreed to its execution.
And that, apparently, was something Priscilla—whom he seemed to know personally—could not fathom.
"From the throne, I looked upon the Empire and considered how far to loosen my grip. Victory demands sacrifice. Pride cannot be maintained without blood. That is the way of the Empire."
"I have no intention of defying the Code of the Sword Wolves either. I called it madness, but there was a real chance of success. In truth, had Arakiya not been there, the bloodless conquest would have succeeded."
"————"
"The flaw was not in the plan. It was in my assessment. Priscilla—I will not tolerate mockery of my strategist's proposal, even from you. The decision was mine. The responsibility is mine."
"Wha—..."
With words no one expected, Abel directly challenged Priscilla.
The role of "strategist" was no small thing to be casually assigned, and Abel's words were clearly meant to shield Subaru. Neither side would yield in their staring contest, and no one else dared interject.
"Well, well, brother. You've really gotten on her good side. That's some career advancement."
"...I'm
Shoving the sidling Al away, Subaru pushed back the responsibility being thrust upon him.
That said, Abel's protection had directed Priscilla's attention elsewhere. But that didn't heal the wound inside him.
The responsibility for the lives lost belonged to Subaru—the one who'd devised and executed the plan.
"You can't save 'em all, brother."
Al murmured while fidgeting with the metal fitting on his helmet. Subaru glanced over, but Al kept looking up at the ceiling rather than meeting his eyes.
"The people you get involved with—you can't save all of them. Not that you have to, but if you try, you'll break yourself. I don't recommend it."
"Al..."
"Everyone lives for themselves and dies for themselves. You said it yourself, brother—this ain't a game. So each person's gotta carry the weight of their own life."
That was Al's characteristic cynicism coming through.
It sounded like advice, or like someone trying to reason with a stubborn child, but ultimately it was telling Subaru to accept the tragedy that had occurred for what it was.
In a sense, it was the right way to think.
In truth, Al was right. You couldn't save everyone, and once you committed to trying, there was no end. That was exactly why Subaru had never managed to save everyone before.
But war was different in scale. —Was that choice really the right one?
The number of lives Subaru could save with a single decision—wasn't it more than ten or a hundred?
"This is quite the farce."
While Subaru and Al talked, the standoff between Priscilla and Abel continued alongside.
Abel had declared the responsibility was his, and Priscilla drew her fan from between her breasts, then traced a circle with its tip—pointing not just at the council chamber, but at the city as a whole.
"You execute the strategist's plan and take the city, and this is the result. The miracle that drove Arakiya away won't happen twice. That method is spent, wouldn't you say?"
"No. There won't be a second time."
To Priscilla's question, Abel nodded without hesitation.
Subaru, who'd frowned at the reference to the method used to drive Arakiya away, suddenly realized—during Al and Arakiya's sword fight, there had been a moment when Arakiya began acting strangely.
"That wasn't something Al did, was it..."
"Hmm? Wasn't me. Besides, if it were me, I'd have handled what came after a lot more smoothly. I got deflected and knocked flat on my ass."
"Fair point."
Now that he thought about it, the aftermath had been remarkably clumsy for something Al orchestrated.
As the two talked, the gazes in the council chamber converged on Abel. If anyone had set something up at that moment, it had to be him. Under those converging gazes, Abel snorted in irritation.
"Arakiya is a 'Spirit Eater.' She feeds on spirits in the atmosphere and absorbs their power."
"...Spirit... Eater?"
The name was utterly unfamiliar yet ominous, and Subaru's eyes widened involuntarily.
He'd already sensed that the Volachia Empire operated under different rules and a different foundation than the Kingdom of Lugnica, but a 'Spirit Eater' was on another level entirely.
Subaru himself was a minor practitioner of spirit arts—someone who borrowed the power of spirits. This was radically different from that. In blunt terms— "Definitely don't want to introduce that thing to Beako. ...Is a 'Spirit Eater' a common thing?"
"Not particularly. The 'Spirit Eater' is originally a secret art known only to tribes living on the fringes of Volachia. However, due to its fearsome nature, the lineage was wiped out and the method of awakening it lost to history."
"At least, to my knowledge, no 'Spirit Eater' besides Arakiya has been confirmed. If there were another, we'd have protected them with the utmost care. She was a subject of the Observers'... No, that's irrelevant now."
Disliking the digression, Abel shook his head and steered the conversation back on track.
Relieved to hear that 'Spirit Eaters' weren't common—and that Beako wouldn't be at risk of being devoured—Subaru pressed further.
"So how exactly did you lure Arakiya into that state?"
"I didn't lure her. —I simply induced mana intoxication."
"Mana intoxication... Huh, I see. That was quite the neat little trick."
Understanding dawned on Al, who nodded appreciatively while stroking his chin.
Even after hearing 'mana intoxication,' Subaru didn't immediately grasp it.
"If I remember right, going to a place with a really high concentration of mana can make people with sensitive constitutions feel sick..."
"Due to the nature of being a 'Spirit Eater,' Arakiya is especially susceptible to that kind of effect. That said, the prerequisite for absorbing spirits is having an相应的 tolerance that far exceeds normal limits. To push past that baseline and force Arakiya into mana intoxication..."
"Yeah, I had her use a treasure. And with what she used, my reserves are completely tapped out."
As he spoke, Abel gestured with a chin lift toward Subaru. Subaru furrowed his brows.
"You mean something I used? What did I... when did I..."
"At the 'Ceremony of Blood命,' you smashed a ring to break the magical beast's horn. That's what it was."
"Oh..."
He'd completely forgotten, but now the memory resurfaced—he'd been lent a ring that could cast magic. In the chaos of battle, he'd punched through Ergina's horn together with the ring, shattering both the magical beast's horn and destroying his own arm and the ring in the process.
And now Abel was saying he'd used something of comparable value during the fight with Arakiya.
"I had her crush a hidden ring in tandem with collapsing the balcony. The mana contained within overflowed and filled the surroundings—it took time to take effect, but..."
"And sure enough, little Arakiya got mana-sick and ended up like that. Well, mana-sick or not, I'm the one she casually wrecked."
"That moment—you actually pulled a stunt like that..."
Even while everyone was battered and injured, Abel had been searching for a path to victory while being pressed by one of the Empire's strongest. Subaru had to admire Abel's tenacity.
Subaru prided himself on his own stubbornness too, but the gap in raw intellect between them was so vast that it amounted to little more than futile scratching and a desperate counterattack.
In any case— "It was a plan originally prepared for Arakiya, wasn't it? To set up contingencies against someone you keep at your side, never knowing when they'll bare their fangs—that's awfully cautious."
"The closer someone is to you, the more you prepare countermeasures for the moment you become enemies. ...Especially with Arakiya. There was never any telling when she might turn on me."
"—Still, tricks like that only work once. Preparing enough magic crystals to induce mana intoxication isn't easy either. Before the next opportunity, securing proper fighting strength is imperative. However—"
At that, Priscilla paused meaningfully.
She fanned open her fan to conceal the lower half of her face, her crimson eyes narrowed as she appraised Abel. With a probing, testing gaze, she let out a small sigh— "Bringing the 'People of Shudrak' under your banner went as expected... But adopting the strategy of that starry-eyed strategist who advocated for a bloodless conquest and laying siege to a fortress city—that I cannot call anything other than foolish."
"————"
"I cannot, in good conscience, recommend that my allies support you."
"Allies?!"
Priscilla said this with her usual composure, as if stating the obvious. Subaru was stunned—not just him, but everyone in the council chamber except Abel and Al.
Al, as Priscilla's companion, was one thing, but Abel not reacting at all felt bafflingly unfair. Subaru chose not to dwell on it— "Wait, wait, wait—you're way ahead of yourself! Allies? ...For starters, I don't even understand your stance. I heard you came to help Abel, but—"
"I did not come to help. Do not take the ravings of my court jester at face value."
"Fine! Whether you came to help Abel or not doesn't matter—that's not important. What I want to know is your bigger goal."
It was true that a small immediate goal—dialogue with Abel—had been her stated purpose.
But what Subaru really wanted to know was why Priscilla, along with Al and presumably other members of her entourage, were in the Volachia Empire in the first place.
And beyond that, whether she was willing to side with Abel would be ideal.
"Tell me honestly. None of us—me, everyone here—can figure out what to make of you."
"My, what an outrageous presumption. What you lot think of me is of no concern. Regardless of what any of you think, I will do as I please. After all..."
"—The world is arranged for my convenience, is it not?"
Subaru recited her familiar philosophy, and Priscilla snorted. Then, sensing the growing intensity of the gazes directed at her, she closed one eye.
"My purpose is to return the emperor who was driven from the throne to his rightful seat. Otherwise, I'll be plagued by incessantly bothersome visitors."
"I don't need to tell you that those assassins weren't on my orders."
"I'm not suspicious of you. That is precisely why I went to the trouble of coming all the way here. More accurately, I suppose I should say I had myself carried by wings."
Still keeping one eye closed, Priscilla tilted her gaze upward. Not toward the ceiling, but beyond it—toward the night sky.
More specifically, not just the sky, but to beings that claimed dominion over it— "Don't tell me you and Al flew here?!"
"Yeah, think express delivery by wyvern. Honest to God, when the princess just jumped off on her own, I thought it was the end of the world. I can't do the same thing myself, and I couldn't even get down until they lowered the altitude."
"Wyverns... I've heard enough to be terrified, and those were just water dragons from Pristella."
Beyond earth dragons, fantasy creatures—the existence of water dragons was one thing, but now wyverns had entered the picture.
From what he'd heard, wyverns were extremely ferocious and required specialized techniques to tame. Because so few people possessed those skills, simply riding a wyvern was an incredibly rare privilege.
"So Priscilla's ally is someone who can dispatch wyvern couriers?"
"Don't be so crass as to seize upon a turn of phrase. In your case, vulgarity always overpowers cleverness. Cultivate some charm—perhaps then I'd deign to look at you."
"If you're doing your makeup right now, you'd have to be out of your mind..."
He was about to point out that he still hadn't dispelled his cross-dressing disguise, but everyone present could read the room, so no one touched on that.
Anyway, the conversation had veered dramatically off course again, but— "So your goal is to put Abel back on the throne. Does that mean we can work together?"
"What I'd like to do is simply agree, but... I haven't forgotten what was said earlier. If this man lacks the qualities of an emperor, restoring him to power would be meaningless."
"————"
Abel's gaze sharpened, and he glared straight at Priscilla.
What Priscilla took issue with wasn't that Subaru's proposal for a 'bloodless conquest' had failed to be carried through—it was the very conception behind it.
Measured against Volachian standards, softness was fatal. In practice, Subaru's lack of thoroughness had cost lives. Her suspicion couldn't be denied.
But— "I will reclaim the throne. No matter what anyone says, that is absolute. —Priscilla, even if it is you who says it, that will not change."
In Subaru's stead, Abel declared this with unwavering force.
It was the same declaration—or perhaps even more fervent—than when he'd revealed his true identity before Subaru and sworn to reclaim this nation.
"————"
Hearing Abel's resolve, the expressions of everyone in the council chamber shifted.
Kuna and Holly housed the will to follow as the People of Shudrak, Zikr bowed his head as if confronting something divine, Al turned to watch Priscilla's reaction, and Priscilla herself, having been defied head-on, narrowed her eyes— "Your spirit may not have diminished, but the reality hasn't kept pace. You've been driven from the throne, have you not?"
"————"
"I'm already aware of the circumstances. The question is—who started this? Whose scheme was it?"
"—The one who drew the map was Prime Minister Bersets, I believe."
At Priscilla's question, Abel answered with hostility smoldering in his dark eyes.
The Prime Minister was the de facto pinnacle of state governance—a close confidant of the king or emperor. If the military's highest were the generals or the Knight Commander, the civil administration's highest might be called the Prime Minister.
In any case, it was precisely the kind of number-two position that made betrayal all too easy.
"Old wretch. To think he'd actually make use of Lamia's Legacy..."
"Naturally, I'd foreseen his treachery and prepared accordingly. But..."
Abel paused there and let out a quiet breath.
It was an uncharacteristic display—the first hint of vulnerability Subaru had seen from him. The emperor who'd been unshaken even when driven from his throne showed, for the first time, a trace of weakness.
The cause of that weakness wasn't the treacherous Prime Minister— "I failed to see through
"You're kidding—General Chisha?"
Zikr was the one who blurted out that response, driven by indignation.
As a second-rank general of the Empire, the names of the 'Nine Divine Generals' must have been much more familiar to Zikr than to Subaru. Drawing the room's gaze, he stroked his abundant hair— "General Chisha is an exceptional figure among the Nine Divine Generals. He himself was renowned not for martial prowess but for his strategic acumen. In the 'Imperial Selection Ceremony,' he was said to have supported Lord Vincent more than any other..."
"So he was basically his right-hand man? The political right-hand man, the Prime Minister, and the long-time right-hand man, the General—both betrayed him?"
"Don't repeat that. My right arm is attached to my right shoulder."
"Way to be tough about it..."
Listening to Zikr's explanation, Subaru was surprised by how little support Abel actually commanded.
Then again, given Volachia's extreme ideology, an emperor deemed weak would probably be overthrown immediately, so maybe it wasn't that unusual.
"Is it common for emperors here to end up on the run?"
"Since I took the throne, I've been formally driven out only twice."
"But you've got a track record!"
"Ridiculous. The ones who hauled me off were knights from the Kingdom. Take your complaints to them."
Abel's genuinely affrighted expression made Subaru too exhausted to even quip.
Come to think of it, he vaguely recalled Julius once mentioning he'd been sent to the Empire as an envoy, but he really hoped that wasn't connected to this. If it was, the world was far too small.
"So, Your Majesty, your own confidant and closest advisor drove you from the throne, and Arakiya's gone over to the enemy. ...That's bad, isn't it? You got any allies?"
"
"Wow, General Goz really came through!"
"However, if the other Nine Divine Generals besides Chisha and Arakiya have also turned, there's no telling how long Goz could have held. The likelihood is he died in battle."
The existence of a 'Nine Divine General' who'd risked his life to protect Abel was cause for hope, but even that was a fragile hope. Still, Zikr shook his head— "If you'll forgive my presumption, no report of General Goz's death has reached me. Whether fallen in battle or dead of illness, a warrior of General Goz's stature—his death couldn't be concealed for long."
"Then perhaps he's been captured."
"Almost certainly. No—I'm certain of it! A warrior of General Goz's caliber!"
At Abel's words, Zikr bowed respectfully.
If even Zikr showed this level of respect, then this person called Goz must be someone truly extraordinary. Or perhaps, despite the fearsome name, was a woman.
"If both the Prime Minister and the Nine Divine Generals have become enemies, the Empire is as good as doomed."
Before Subaru could interject with a pointless question, Priscilla murmured after finishing listening. While agreeing with her, Subaru raised his hand— "I know this is coming late, but what about Abel declaring himself emperor? That way, the people in the imperial capital quietly running things would be traitors who committed treason..."
"Unfortunately, brother, you can't expect outraged civilians or soldiers to rise up and massacre a coup government for you."
"I wasn't thinking that darkly, but why not?"
"—Because this is the Volachia Empire, where power is what commands respect."
Subaru's suggestion was shot down, and Abel elaborated on Al's point.
The emperor driven from his throne crossed his arms, his perfect brows slightly furrowed.
"If I announced myself and declared my intention to reclaim the imperial capital, I would be welcomed. But that won't translate to their support. What's taken must be taken back. That's the way of things."
"Not just things or territory—the throne itself..."
"There are no exceptions. —Therefore, what I must do is clear."
On the verge of burying his head in his hands over this dead end, Subaru was startled by Abel's words.
He'd assumed they were at an impasse, but Abel's answer was the opposite. He rose to his feet and placed his hand on the round table.
And then— "General Zikr, the map."
"Yes! Right away!"
At the command, Zikr relayed instructions to the Imperial soldiers standing by in the corner of the room. One of them promptly pulled the map off the wall of the council chamber and spread it across the round table.
The world map they unfurled showed the entire world, including Volachia.
"Where we are is here, in the east. The fortress city of Guaral sits here. And the imperial capital, Lupgana, which must be retaken, is roughly in the center of the Empire."
"...Volachia is really damn big."
Pointed out on the map, Subaru was freshly struck by the sheer size of the territory—a国土 he'd had little awareness of until now.
This world was governed by four great powers dividing it four ways, and the Volachia Empire, occupying the south on the world map, was the largest by far.
The Badheim jungle they'd struggled so hard to penetrate was, when viewed against all of Volachia, nothing more than a negligible patch of geography.
"Each of the Empire's cities is managed by its own city lord or feudal lord. Guaral is no exception—every city maintains its own autonomous fighting force and won't shy from battle when the situation demands. We bring these under our banner and secure the military strength needed to reclaim the imperial capital."
"...So basically the classic 'conquer the country' simulation route. I get that."
"You seem unconvinced."
"Of course I am. Guaral alone was this much of an undertaking. No way it's going to go that smoothly."
As Abel explained while pointing at the map, Subaru managed to follow along. He could follow the logic, at least. The emotional side was another matter.
As he'd said before, this wasn't a game. The strategies that worked in a simulation RPG wouldn't necessarily translate to reality.
Abel's outlook struck Subaru as dangerously optimistic at best.
But— "There is a way to dispel your concerns. Indeed, it is essential for accomplishing what I must."
"A prerequisite..."
"—Securing the 'Nine Divine Generals.'"
Hearing that answer, Subaru's eyes went wide.
Of course. Wasn't it precisely because those very 'Nine Divine Generals' had betrayed him that Abel had been driven from the throne?
The friendly Nine Divine General was missing. The two they knew about had already turned enemy.
That left— "The remaining Nine Divine Generals...?"
"Exactly."
At the unexpected question, Abel raised a finger and nodded reassuringly at the shaken Subaru. Then he surveyed the faces of everyone besides Subaru— "The citizens of the Empire are formidable. The 'Nine Divine Generals' are the embodiment of that tradition. In other words, to be the supreme ruler of the Volachia Empire, unifying the 'Nine Divine Generals' is indispensable."
"So that means..."
Taking in Abel's words and arriving at what came next, Subaru's eyes flew open. Seeing Subaru's reaction, Abel's lips curved into a warlike grin.
And then— "—'Blue Lightning'
"————"
"In this conflict, the side that secures more of the 'Nine Divine Generals' will prevail. That is the strategy for victory—and the absolute condition I must fulfill."