Episode 1: To the Place of the Final Battle
Her long, waist-length black hair is tied back, and she wears a traveling outfit that makes her look like a man, a sword slung around her waist.
The figure reflected in the large mirror looks more like a well-traveled beauty in men's clothing than a princess of this country.
"Alright."
She thought she had gotten used to getting ready on her own, refusing the help of the maids.
Mariabelle checks her appearance to make sure her appearance is in order, and finally pats the hilt of the sword that her father used...... hanging at her waist, the Hero's Holy Sword.
(Father. Please protect me... and everyone.)
When she prepared herself for battle with that wish, what she saw in the mirror was not the princess of this country, Fonteau, but the face of a hero.
Mariabelle pulled herself together and left the room.
"Onee-sama and Kara... it looks like they're still in their room."
She hadn't seen or heard anything, but that's what she felt.
Mariabelle didn't doubt her intuition, and first headed to her sister's room, which was nearby.
"Onee-sama. Are you ready?"
Standing in front of her sister's room, Mariabelle enters Meltia's room, familiarly going through the door.
It's partly because they're sisters that they're as easygoing as when they were kids, but it's also proof that Mariabelle trusts her sister, Meltia, more than being a family.
But on this particular morning, that was a bit of a problem.
"Kyaa!?"
A small but firm scream rises as Mariabelle opens the door.
When she hurriedly turned her head in the direction of the voice, Meltia, who was probably in the middle of changing her clothes, was in her pretty light pink underwear, hiding it in her green-based clothes.
But also her overly ample bosom and her large buttocks.
The traveling outfit that her mother wore when she and her father traveled in the past did not hide most of her white skin or her light pink underwear.
The voluptuous limbs she inherited from her mother, unlike the tall, and slender Mariabelle.
However, there is almost nothing that can be called fat, and although her chest and buttocks are large, her waist is surprisingly thin.
The light pink underwear she wears is adorned with many frills and lace, giving it a luxurious feel, and it seems very unsuitable for a woman about to go into battle.
But it was the same for Mariabelle.
Perhaps because she is a woman.
After all, when it comes to fighting a battle, she wants to dress up not only on the outside but also on the inside... Maybe she had that kind of feeling.
In fact, Marieabelle was also dressed in the equipment of a hero...... but she had somehow chosen black underwear that she liked to wear.
"Have you not finished changing clothes yet?"
"Uu... no, that's. I'm worried about which underwear to use."
"――Fufu."
A few years ago, when she lived peacefully in this castle, Mariabelle felt that the relationship was the exact opposite, and her lips opened.
In the past, Mariabelle often overslept and was woken up by her mother, Leticia, and her older sister, Meltia.
Now Mariabelle wakes up first, and Meltia occasionally makes her black-haired sister wait...
Her companion and best friend Kara also often mutters about it.
To that extent, the positions of the two sisters reversed.
(Yep, there's no way that's true...)
However, Mariabelle denies that notion.
If one looked closely, one can see the look of fatigue on Meltia's face, although it is hidden by a little heavy makeup.
She wanted to make sure that Mariabelle, the hero, was in perfect condition to fight with all her might.
With this in mind, Meltia supports her sister in every possible way.
Mariabelle knew about it, so she did not blame her sister, who was in the middle of changing her clothes, even though it was almost time to leave, and went into the room, closing the door behind her.
“How's Okaa-sama…?”
"Yes, she's fine. She seems to have regained some of her mana while she was sleeping, but that's all. I heard she had a very healthy breakfast."
A few days ago, the slime invaded the royal castle of Fonteau.
The slime also caused a commotion in the royal city and took advantage of the chaos to target Queen Leticia, an attack that was not only violent but also deceptive.
The incubus-mimicking slime's kidnapping of the queen ended in failure thanks to the efforts of Mariabelle and the others, but Leticia, who had been shown a lewd dream, was deprived of her mana and weakened.
Although her life was not in danger, most of her mana, which is still considered the strongest on the continent, was taken from her.
(Onee-sama says "a little" so as not to worry me...)
Mariabelle was also aware of this.
The stolen mana was probably already absorbed by the body of the slime... the humanoid slime that was reported.
(That night... I was so focused on helping Okaa-sama that I must have missed the slime.)
After defeating the slime, which mimicked a monster reminiscent of a giant cyclops, Mariabelle's priority was to rescue her mother.
Her mother was weakened and the cause…… there was no release of her stolen mana.
Meltia and Kara said it couldn't be helped because they realized it later, but they suspect that the slime that Mariabelle had failed to defeat had collected Leticia's mana and fled the scene.
(How strong is that slime?)
She had been made to realize that conventional wisdom does not apply to it, but the existence of the slime, which grows and becomes stronger and stronger without limit, makes the hero Marieabelle feel unpleasant.
(If one day it becomes so strong that even I can't beat it......)
She could feel that anxiety growing stronger by the day.
Not a premonition.
But intuition.
She had a feeling that her hero's intuition is telling her that she will eventually not be able to beat the slime if she continued like this.
As she walked through Meltia's room and sat down on her bed, Mariabelle unconsciously stroked the hilt of the holy sword.
As if asking her father―― she wondered if it was okay as it is.
"What's wrong, Maria?"
Meltia, noticing her expression, called out to her.
While wearing a traveling outfit with a look of impatience...... she sat down next to Mariabelle in a half-naked outfit.
Her beautiful silver hair, inherited from her mother, spread out on the bed, and some of its soft texture touched Mariabelle's hand.
……Also unconsciously, Mariabelle grabbed a tuft of her sister’s well-groomed silver hair and squeezed it with a little strength in her fingers.
“Onee-sama… can we win? Can we keep this up?"
“…………”
Meltia did not have a clear answer to that question.
Indeed, her talent as a mage is great, and the total amount of mana she possesses has now grown to a level that rivals that of her mother.
However, she is only an "excellent mage" and not a unique one like Mariabelle.
In this sense, Kara, who is on the same side as Mariabelle, is fighting against the slime with the idea of "science", a concept that is difficult for them to understand.
An irreplaceable, and absolutely necessary for the survival of the human race.
……It is difficult for Meltia, who is not "it", to truly understand Mariabelle's anxiety.
So she put her hand on her dark-haired sister's head, not as a companion of the hero, but as Mariabelle's family.
"Don't worry. I'm sure you can protect everything you want to protect."
Gently and carefully, she stroked her beautiful black hair, which was tied up.
Just like in the past. Just like when she was a child.
Mariabelle was born as the daughter of the strongest mage on the continent, but she didn't have any magic talent.
The only child in the world with black hair, she was troubled by the fact that she was "different" in many ways.
When she soothed Mariabelle, Meltia always stroked her black hair.
……That black hair is special, but it’s a definite connection.
Proof of the existence that their father and mother love each other.
Not a hero or a princess of a country.
――It was proof of a loved child born between two people who loved each other.
"That's why we're here―― to fight alongside you. To protect you."
"Onee-sama……"
Mariabelle put her head on Meltia's shoulder and leaned her weight on it.
As a hero, she was not allowed to be spoiled.
The current Mariabelle is in a position where she must support everyone living in this world.
――But it's painful.
As a girl, not as a hero, it was too heavy.
That's why Meltia wants to carry half of that luggage... no, even just a little bit. She wanted to support her.
Happy with that feeling, Mariabelle put her head on Meltia's shoulder, which was still undressed...... put her cheek against it, and closed her eyes.
Only this time, not as a hero, not as a princess of a country, but as a mere sister.
“I will protect Onee-sama―― so please help me.”
"Yes. That's what I'm here for..."
Meltia also looked at Mariabelle's black hair, which was right next to her.
"It's the big sister's job to protect her little sister――."
Surely that is normal.
Protecting a sister.
Meltia felt a little lighter when she remembered why she was fighting.
"...So, do your best. If that doesn't work, I'll do something about it."
But Meltia also realizes that such a thing is impossible.
Her sister... the hero Mariabelle had already risen far higher than her.
As a hero, she wields that power for the people.
If Mariabelle can't win, Meltia knows that there's nothing she can do about it.
But. Nevertheless.
"It's okay, Maria."
As an older sister, she wants to support her younger sister―― even if it's only in words, even if it's only a small amount of help, she spins her words to comfort her sister.
Meltia is just as desperate as Mariabelle is anxious.
……—So as not to be crushed by that anxiety.
To keep walking without crying in the abnormal situation of the slime's growth and evolution.
――While they were talking, there was a knock on the door of the room.
"Excuse me. Meltia-sama, is Maria..."
The woman who appeared while saying that was Kara, who had been violated as a diversion the night their mother was almost kidnapped.
She enters, her chestnut hair combed by the castle maid ruffled.
The figure of Mariabelle that she was looking for…… she sighed when she saw Meltia, who was half-naked and comforting Mariabelle who had a worried look on her face.
"Oh... am I interrupting?"
"No. What's wrong, Kara-san?"
"I'm kind of troubled to be treated normally in that attire...... anyway, why don't you finish changing your clothes, Meltia-sama?"
Kara pointed out without seeming to be disturbed by the sight of the sisters comforting each other on the bed.
There is still some time before the departure, but that doesn't mean they shouldn't leave early.
However, even for Kara, this was probably not her true intention.
Her expression did not change much, but she wondered if she felt guilty for interrupting both sisters' time.
She was playing with a tuft of chestnut-colored hair that Mariabelle always says will definitely become beautiful if she kept taking care of it...... and she tried to walk out of the room a little quicker than usual.
Kara has already realized it.
Perhaps this time will be the last battle with the slime.
Or it will be a turning point on whether or not humanity can survive.
A slime castle that suddenly appeared in the depths of the deep forest of Grabalt―― monster-shaped slimes overflowing from there.
Surely there is a being there that unites the slime......
If it wasn't there, it wouldn't have prepared such a conspicuous building.
Fasalina, the goddess that people worship, Jenna, a devout follower of the goddess who defeated the demon king with the hero, and the knights of Fonteau, who have abundant mana, were all kidnapped.
There is no time to spare.
In the midst of this―― this must be the last time the sisters would spend time alone.
After leaving the castle, the two must act as a hero and a companion.
"I-if it's just a little longer, why not take it easy? The people we're going with are also in the middle of preparing."
“…Thank you, Kara.”
"Don't thank me for that."
Mariabelle's words made Kara embarrassed.
She knew that those words are sincere... they are really words of gratitude that have leaked from the bottom of her heart.
"Anyway, it's fine as long as it's safe―― I was just looking for you because I knew it would be a problem if the slime invaded and attacked us again."
With those words, Mariabelle understood why Kara came to her sister's room.
The other day, Kara was attacked to keep Mariabelle away from the royal castle.
In reality, she is a female scientist who became a prisoner of the slimes who invaded through the sewers and made a hole in the basement and became responsible for keeping the hero away.
She came to visit Meltia's room because she was worried that Mariabelle, who was not in her room, had been attacked as she had been.
(She was worried about me......)
She didn't rely on her as a hero, but worried about her as a friend.
That kindness, that worry, made her happy.
Lifting her head, which had been resting on her sister's shoulder, Mariabelle smiled and stood up.
"……Are you going?"
"Yes. We can't keep the soldiers waiting."
“Hey, did you hear what I said? I'm sure the soldiers will wait that long even if you take it easy......"
"No, it's fine―― I can't make you worry."
Mariabelle smiled as she approached Kara, and with an even deeper smile, she turned her smile towards the chestnut-haired female scientist…… her best friend.
"Thank you, Kara. For worrying about me."
"...It's hard to deal with someone who has sharp intuition."
"Uu... I-I'm sorry..."
"I'm not angry, though."
With that said, Mariabelle and Kara walked out of the room.
Seeing that......
"...I need to get dressed quickly, too."
Meltia finally realized that she had been in her underwear, dealing with her sister, and that Kara had seen the scene.
Aware of that, her cheeks blushed all at once, she quickly puts on the traveling outfit she inherited from her mother......
...
"Everyone, this is the final battle!! Let's win, live, and come back!!"
As Mariabelle said this, the advance party of about 300 people set out from a large gate built on the east side of the high wall that surrounds the royal capital of Fonteau.
Most of the soldiers are dressed in full-body armor made of iron to protect them from the slime as much as possible.
Naturally, the weight of the heavy metallic armor would slow their progress and slow down their excellent mobility, which is a weapon of the elves.
But it is still much better than being paralyzed by the paralyzing venom of the slime and unable to move.
……The people cheered as the heavily armed group left the capital.
"――We must do our best to get them all back."
"I agree."
Mariabelle on horseback muttered unconsciously, and Kara, who was next to her, agreed.
The two were scheduled to leave as the second group, leading about five hundred people after the first group had left.
Meltia, a mage, would be with the third group, the rear unit, which consisted of two hundred mages.
"Maria."
As she watched people saying goodbye to their families and friends from a short distance away from the second group, she was called by her nickname.
For a moment she thought her sister had left her group, but...... Kara hurriedly dismounted from her horse and bowed her head while kneeling down.
“Okaa-sama!? How are you feeling… ah, no. What's with your appearance?"
When Mariabelle turned around, she saw her mother there.
She looks somewhat like what her sister Meltia might look like when she grows up to be about 10 years old.
She has a youthful appearance that makes it hard to believe that she is the mother of two children, but she also has a calm, mature air about her, and a demeanor that suggests she could still be in her twenties.
She must have regained some of her mana after resting for the past few days, and her appearance is filled with vitality and a presence that sets her apart from her older sister.
She is the queen of Fonteau and the wife of the hero...... who was summoned from another world and defeated the Demon King.
Mariabelle and Meltia's mother, Leticia.
What surprised her daughter was her outfit.
The first thing that caught her eye was the fact that her beautiful waist-length silver hair was tied back behind the nape of her neck so that it wouldn't get in the way.
It was as if she was trying to make it easier for her to move around, instead of showing off her beauty as a queen to her people. A large black ribbon was tied around her hair.
Normally, Leticia is dressed in a luxurious dress befitting her position as queen, adorned with gorgeous jewelry and makeup.
But this time, Leticia was wearing only a thin layer of makeup on her beautiful face, which is unbelievable for a mother of two, and she was also wearing something that was not appropriate for the position of queen.
"Okaa-sama, your appearance is..."
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you beforehand, Maria. This time, I will go with you."
"Eh... eh!?"
"The Queen is...?"
"Yes."
Mariabelle is too surprised to speak, and Kara asks her question instead.
Leticia nodded deeply and firmly at those words.
The words that were spoken earlier were not misheard or joked about.
It was evident from her attire.
She is wearing a thin shirt and a leather jacket with a thick fabric, keeping her skin from being exposed, but because of her overly ample breasts, the front buttons of the jacket are not fully closed.
This allows part of her ample bosom―― her deep cleavage to peek out through the shirt's chest part, contrasting well with the color of her clothing, which is as white as fresh snow.
Below, she wears a long skirt with a deep slit on the left side, and on her back is a large staff that is even longer than her tall mother.
It's slightly inferior to the staff she handed over to her daughter, Meltia, but it had been her favorite for many years―― it was the magic staff she used when she traveled with the hero.
The robe she wears over her thick leather jacket is also suitable for long journeys, and the large pure white ribbon around her waist, instead of a corset, accentuates the slenderness of her waist, even though she wears an unfashionable outfit.
At the same time, her plump breasts and buttocks were coordinated like her older daughter, and every time she made the slightest movement, her attractive female flesh swayed softly, even through her shirt.
From the deep slit on the left of the skirt part, there is a pure white stocking and a part of a garter belt. And the side straps of her panties were peeking out.
The reason why one could easily see her underwear if she moves violently is probably because this traveling outfit is the one she used when she was traveling with Mariabelle's father...... the previous hero.
They must have adjusted their length in the past few days, but after all, she had grown too differently from those days and the size doesn't match.
Particularly noticeable are her breasts and buttocks.
The thin fabric around her breasts is pulled to the left and right, creating lewd wrinkles, and her buttocks are lifted up by the skirt, making the shape of her buttocks stand out firmly.
The underwear lines are not visible because she wears thong-like underwear with a small cloth area for the condition of the garment.
The slit reveals the side straps of the underwear, and she realized that the underwear Leticia is wearing is a pure white panty with a luxurious design.
The dark blue cloak over her clothes hides the fact that her body is too voluptuous to be concealed.
The queen's skin and some of her undergarments are still showing, which makes the queen's sexiness and adult charm stand out even more.
……However, no one really looked at the Queen’s underwear, and even Leticia herself didn’t really care.
Is this the part where she has little sense of shame because she has been in the public eye as royalty?
“I was attacked again the other day and I realized. We can't let the slime go unchecked any longer...... If we don't make sure it's defeated here, there will be no rest for us."
“Yes. Therefore, I will definitely―― I will defeat the slime with Otou-sama's sword."
At Mariabelle's words, Leticia slowly shook her head.
"Yes. Her power, Fasalina-sama's sword, will surely lead you to victory."
Leticia feels that way. She is sure of it.
But at the same time, she knows.
They must use what is available. Otherwise, there will be no complete victory.
……That she was included among those who they could use.
"The attack the other day... that attack was clearly aimed at me――"
They experiment on the people of the royal capital, putting them to sleep and taking their mana while they're at it.
And when it was noticed, the slimes tried to take Leticia away.
Leticia, who has declined from her prime but still has a large amount of mana...... and continues to produce enormous amounts of mana by resting her body, is the best bait for them.
Leticia realized this after the last attack and attempted kidnapping.
She realized that she still had value.
She really didn't want to, but she was anxious, she was afraid...... but she was also prepared to give herself up as a last trap to send this dark-haired girl to the enemy.
(I, too, must be willing to give my body for victory)
With that in mind, Leticia's decision was quick.
She gave her old equipment to her other daughter, Meltia, so she gathered replacement equipment from the treasury.
She had the maids adjust their length and she trained with them to remember how to use her weapon.
Her physical strength as well as her mana had dropped, but even so, her experience in combat and her magic skills were still better than Meltia's.
The fact that Leticia would be accompanying her may have been inappropriate, but Mariabelle's heart was racing with excitement.
"If I can be of any help, I will take the bait. Maria, if it will ensure that you get to the enemy's leader."
"But that's――"
But the excitement was momentary.
She's happy to be able to fight with her mother―― but they're up against a slime that violates women.
Moreover, it absorbs mana.
Her mother who has not yet fully recovered her strength may only be advantageous to her opponent....... When Mariabelle thought so, Leticia smiled.
"It's okay. I haven't recovered much of my mana yet―― but with my experience and even a small amount of mana I can use, I'll definitely open a path for you."
Leticia's resolve was firm.
At the same time, Mariabelle gasped as she felt that she was prepared to use herself as bait.
"To win―― use everything."
It was such a powerful opponent…… that she had to use even her own mother, the queen of the country.
Leticia understood.
Ever since the day Fonteau was taken from her, she has been tormented with regret.
At that time, if she hadn't let her guard down and defeated the slime, this wouldn't have happened... she felt regret every day.
The time has come to fulfill it.
This time, she was going to defeat the slime―― and when she felt the determination that was so strongly in her heart, Mariabelle could say nothing more.
"Okaa-sama, I..."
"Maria, you must fulfill your mission. I will too..."
After saying this, Leticia went to Meltia's side.
As a mage, she was also assigned to the rear unit.
"Yes, I'm definitely going to win this time."
Kara, who got off her horse and was kneeling on the ground, and Mariabelle's guards stood up and said whatever they wanted to say.
But Mariabelle...
(Nevertheless, I will return with everyone. Okaa-sama, you too... absolutely.)
She thought so.
No matter who the opponent was, no matter how strong they were.
For the people's smiles.
To save the world.
That's what a hero is...
"Mariabelle-sama!"
"Yes...... then, everyone, let's go! This time, let's put an end to this battle!!"
――Mariabelle puts the idea of fighting alongside her mother in the back of her mind and thinks that she has gained a powerful reinforcement.
On the battlefield, there is no need for a parent-child sentiment.
