"The Glau Standear Empire hereby announces the formal acceptance of the Regia Theocracy"s request for a truce. Warriors who have devoted yourselves to the Empire throughout this nine-year-long war, this is a victory won through your blood and bravery!!"

" " "Long live the Empire!!" " "

News of the victory was spreading throughout the battlefield. The soldiers, who had continued to grip the hilts of their swords deespite their wounds and fatigue, raised their arms and cheered loudly, causing the dry air to vibrate nonstop.

In every corner of the battlefield, all covered by rocks and sand, stood the flags of the Glau Standear Empire, primarily green in design, the color of the soldiers" homeland. Decorating the tall mountain range, this additional green color was the n.o.ble hue symbolizing the Glau Standear Empire. Like fresh saplings sprouting from a rocky desert, these raised flags fluttered in the wind. Witnessing this sea of flags after fighting a long war, the soldiers wept from a spontaneous wave of homesickness, but immediately immersed themselves in the joy of victory.

Precipitated by a great famine, this war would come to be known as the First Regia War.

"Come, let us all drink to a toast of victory tonight!"

The Glau Standear Empire"s crown prince in command of this army—Ducat Xerxes—rewarded his knights and soldiers with fine wine and the victory banquet lasted until late at night as though it were a festival celebration.

Inside the lively encampment, there was one corner that seemed to be isolating itself from the victory banquet"s festive atmosphere.

Under the starry sky, a group of people were sitting in a circle, gathered around a fire. The center of the group was a girl for whom it would not be wrong to describe as young. Sitting at the girl"s sides were seven people, each of them busy doing their own thing. Some were chatting nonstop, others were savoring fine wine and there was even someone immersed in reading.

The girl at the center was named Eustina Xerxes.

Only eleven years old, she was the Glau Standear Empire"s Second Princess. Simply the fact that such a young girl was present on a battlefield was in itself quite an unbelievable and bizarre sight. But compared to that, the attire of the people around her was even more strange. The variety of outfits included that ordinary townsfolk, scholarly robes and glamorous clothing as gaudy as an actor"s. Among them was a man wearing a leather breastplate who looked very much like a mercenary, as well as an old man in a well-ironed military uniform. These two formed a minority.

The old man in the military uniform spoke to the people around him, "Perhaps this might be the last opportunity for us to gather in this manner. Ilya, what are your plans from here on?"

The man had posed his question to Ilya, a woman dressed in glamorous clothing. A smile surfaced slowly on her face.

"Well, I shall probably return to Glau Standear and lead my drama troupe on a performance tour. Oh right, Faura, would you like to join me? You do have quite a deft pair of hands."

The girl named Faura replied with a giggle, "Let me see, since I don"t want to be arrested as a repeat offender for pickpocketing, I guess I should simply leave with you, Ilya. But what kind of work do you plan on arranging for me?"

"Do you even need to ask? You"ll run errands for me, of course."

"No way, at least give me a job in props or costumes."

Listening to their conversation with a smile, the old man in military uniform then turned to speak to a young scholarly-looking man.

"Rob, you have to stay by my side to a.s.sist in organizing and producing records for this war."

The man named Rob smiled wryly while scratching his head.

"I guess so. Furthermore, I need to organize the geological survey reports of the Regia Theocracy."

"Indeed, there is now a need to make map amendments."

"You really leave me no choice, Mr. Kauffman..."

Rob"s response brought laughter to the old man in military uniform. Then he turned to the man in leather armor with mercenary airs.

"Gadjell, what are your plans? Given how you"ve distinguished yourself in this war, you may have a chance of being recruited as a castle soldier."

As soon as he finished, this skinny man in his twenties showed a rather overt expression of annoyance.

"What the heck? I"ll have no part in troublesome work of that sort, old man. I"m better off sticking to my trade as a mercenary."

"Very well, I won"t force you. But what are you going to do next? You"ll be unemployed now."

"I"ll take it easy for a while before resuming my old job as a mercenary. After all, in a few days" time, we"ll have a peaceful world that"ll have no need for mercenaries again."

"Yes, although it is too early to boast of peace for the time being, you make a fair point... Then Ur, I suppose you will be returning to your homeland to resume your trade as a blacksmith?"

Hearing the old man"s question, the muscular middle-aged man beamed cheerfully and replied, "Yes, I will go back to the countryside. After all, I still have my own workshop back home. Besides, I have to go back to teach those brats how to make a living."

"Is that so? But given your skills, you would face no problems even if you wanted to open shop in the imperial capital."

"Master Kauffman, you shower me with too much praise. I know my own limits very well. Besides, there"s good iron ore and timber in the countryside. Most important of all, my wife"s waiting for me to return."

"So I see, that is good too."

During this conversation, a young man continued to do his own reading. His age was probably fifteen or sixteen. His appearance was a bit young to be called a man, but his eyes glowed with too much wisdom to call him a child. Exuding an unbelievable aura, this young man continued to flip through the pages of his book while reading from the fire"s light.

"......"

Princess Eustina kept casting glances at the young man who focused on reading. However, he showed no signs of noticing her gaze the whole time. Reaching the end of her patience, the princess suddenly stood up and walked directly up to the young man.

"Chrom."

"......Huh? How may I help you, Princess?"

The young man named Chrom finally took his eyes off the words in the book after the princess spoke to him.

While rubbing her pet.i.te and delicate hands together nonstop, Princess Eustina asked Chrom shyly, "What plans do you have from this point onwards, Chrom? Umm... Will it be something of those lines? Such as staying at the Kauffman residence as a freeloader as before?"

Eustina furtively peered at Chrom as though very curious how he would respond.

However, Chrom"s reply was especially slow. He stared blankly at the sky as though he was not even thinking about her question. Hence, Eustina asked again impatiently, "a.s.suming that is the case, you could also continue as an officer at the imperial palace. Otherwise, you could also serve as my private tutor... W-What do you say, Chrom?"

"Future plans huh...? Well, I was a mountain dweller originally, so I"m intending to return to the mountains."

"The mountains... You intend to return to them?"

"Yeah, or call it... Going back to my homeland? I feel like I need some time to reorganize all that I"ve seen and heard at the imperial capital and various lands, to ponder properly. This war not only enabled me to follow Mr. Kauffman to the battlefield but also gave me a chance to frequent the palace. In the process, I"ve found some matters I must devote my thoughts to."

Hearing him answer so nonchalantly, Eustina leaned forward forcefully and continued to question him.

"W-What matters?"

A slightly troubled look surfaced on Chrom"s face.

"It would only serve to confuse you if I explained to you right now, Princess Eustina. First of all, this is something that I haven"t even organized in my own mind yet, which is precisely why I"ve decided I need time to put my thoughts in order."

"I-I see... But will you be returning to the capital?"

"...If a need arises... It would be best if the world could enter an era of peace, never needing soldiers and us to gather ever again... However, that would be merely wishful thinking given the world situation at present."

Apparently understanding what Chrom was implying, Eustina instantly put on a solemn countenance.

Even though the long war with the Regia Theocracy had ended, it did not mean that war had vanished from this world. No one would be surprised if some country brought war and conflict to the Glau Standear Empire again one day. Such was the current state of affairs in the world.

".........I see."

Murmuring in response, Eustina stared at the campfire absent-mindedly.

Gathered around Princess Eustina, this small group of seven, who really did not resemble soldiers, were known as "Pnévma" to the world at large. The first to call them that was Eustina"s elder brother—Prince Ducat. Due to Eustina"s retainers always taking action silently without warning, he had half-jokingly nicknamed them Pnévma, meaning ghost. However, these seven, hailing from all kinds of backgrounds and locations, had made full use of their talents. Whether secret spying missions, laying traps behind enemy lines, or manipulating false information to provide to the enemy nation, they had cleverly confused their opponents. This method of fighting was completely different from battles determined by numbers of soldiers alone.

Beyond a doubt, the seven"s activities had brought a dramatic turning point to the long war between the two countries. One could even say that it was thanks to them that the war finally ended with the Regia Theocracy proposing peace talks.

Thereafter, the Empire"s knights and soldiers would reverently call the them the "Seven Saints of the Empire" for playing a spectacular role in this Regia War. However, details of the individual ident.i.ties in the Seven Saints was a secret that was not widely disclosed.

The princess stared intently at the fire for a moment then suddenly turned to face the Seven Saints. Occupied in their drinking and merrymaking, the Seven Saints also gathered their gazes upon the young princess.

"As a member of the imperial family, I cannot express my grat.i.tude enough for your accomplishments in this war. However, with the Regia Theocracy first and foremost, Latorg on the west, the Allied Nations of Scrutabia on the south, and the Clemo tribe in the inner sea, these are all nations who greedily seek domination over the Neyresia continent."

The princess spoke in such a dignified manner that she did not seem like a mere young girl at all. Eustina gazed intently at the faces of the seven present.

"Should ever a time arise... when war threatens our country again, plunging the populace in hardship, may I request a.s.sistance from all of you again in that event?"

After listening to the young princess, the Seven Saints of the Empire sat in formal posture and bowed their heads. Then in unison, they swore eternal loyalty to the princess, promising to gather under her command to contribute their efforts should the nation face war again.

With one exception...

It was none other than Chrom. He declared firmly to Princess Eustina, "It feels a bit unfair if we are the only ones swearing loyalty to Princess Eustina."

"...Hmm, what do you mean by that, Chrom?"

Even in front of Princess Eustina, he still remained calm and composed. Speaking fluently, he said, "I"d like Princess Eustina to promise us one thing in return."

"Please name it, regardless what it may be."

"The next time we meet, Princess, I shall become a flag-bearer capable of raising your flag of idealism. However, if the flag you raise turns out to be an aimless flag, tainted with dust and easily swayed by the tides of opinion, please allow me to resign from your service."

Apart from Chrom, all members of the Seven Saints reacted with wide-eyed astonishment. Speechless. However, Princess Eustina remained unfazed. Staring at Chrom, she responded with confidence in her eyes.

"As you wish, Chrom. If I were to lack the conviction to raise the flag you speak of, a flag of idealism that would disgrace no one, I probably would not have the right to call myself royalty ever again. I understand that as a member of the imperial family, I must welcome you by raising a military flag devoted to the people of the world. As such, you must hurry to my side when the nation is met with crisis."

"Yes, I shall bear this in mind."

Chrom promised with his head bowed and a gentle smile on his face. The young princess nodded firmly at him.

Her eyes were glimmering brightly as though reflecting the myriad stars in the sky.

Princess Eustina and her aide, Chrom Jarrett.

Set in an era of war and turmoil, the story of these two would unfold as recorded in history, taking place during the Second Regia War that was to come, the break up of the Allied Nations of Scutabia that would result as a consequence, as well as the civil war in Latorg. While everything was developing towards the worst-case scenario, these two would try everything in their power to fight against the tide. One could say that it all started officially with the instant of this oath.

This took place during Year 211, Imperial Era.