Final Chapter: Van’s Territory

THE KING, JALPA, AND MURCIA ALL LODGED IN Seatoh Village. After he had a look at the star-shaped fortress, the ballistae, and the dwarven forge, the king called a strategy meeting to discuss our defense against and invasion of Yelenetta. Scudet and the other territories, I learned, had all sent Chivalric Orders and mercenaries to guard the borders. Only a small group of warriors, the cream of the crop, had been kept behind for the assault on Yelenetta.

Typically, it took a month or two to prepare for war, and especially to acquire the necessary provisions. Factoring in the time it then took to reach enemy territory, it was common for three months to have passed before the beginning of open combat. But the king’s plan seemed to set the Yelenetta invasion less than a month out. He’d made no indication, for example, that he intended to stay in my territory in the long term.

News of the other Chivalric Orders’ arrivals came fast and furious during my meeting with His Highness and Jalpa.

“Count Ventury has arrived! And Count Ferdinatto’s Chivalric Order is right behind him!”

“’Kay!”

“Viscount Panamera has arrived! Others bearing banners from the other houses are arriving as well!”

“’Kay!”

Before long, we had some thirty thousand soldiers on standby outside of Seatoh Village.

“Long time no see, boy!”

The second she saw me, Panamera ruffled my hair and said hello. It was a little embarrassing, but I didn’t hate it, so I returned her greeting in earnest.

“Long time no see, Panamera.”

“That bath was something else!” she said with a joyous laugh. “And it seems you’ve prepared more than enough provisions! Thanks to you, I’ll be living in luxury while I’m here!”

She stuck out her chest as if to show off her dynamite bod. What terrifying weapons those are… I said, “We finished our dwarven forge, too. You should check it out later.”

“Your what?!” someone nearby cut in. Any time I said the word “dwarf,” people around me grew impatient. “I must see it as soon as possible!”

Coming up behind me, the king swiftly put everyone back in their place.

“Retaliation against Yelenetta is our first priority. I’m sure you all understand.”

Hearing this, Panamera, the other nobles, and the members of the Chivalric

Orders all knelt. “Your Highness, I had no idea you were already here.”

“No harm done. As luck would have it, I had business that brought me here earlier than the rest of you,” the king explained. His subjects, still kneeling, raised their heads to look at His Highness. He nodded at them, then folded his arms. “I am holding a war council. Our counterattack necessitates haste. I apologize for asking this of you all, who have only just arrived, but all commanding officers must come to Seatoh Village!”

“Yessir!”
The Chivalric Orders’ commanders and deputy commanders headed straight into Seatoh Village. Only Panamera did not follow suit. Clearly eager to see the new addition to the village, she sidled up to me and whispered, “Boy, where is the dwarven forge?”
Silently, I pointed to the plume of smoke rising from the back of the village. She looked over there, her eyes gleaming.
“Later, could you show me a sword they forged?” “Of course,” I whispered back.
Jalpa and Ventury, walking ahead, glanced back at us. I felt like a kid who’d been caught doing something naughty.
I might have expected everyone to be on edge, what with war looming on the horizon, but for better or worse, everyone who’d been called to the war council seemed exactly the same as always. Well, except Count Ferdinatto, who kept fidgeting and stealing glances at me. It looked like he had something he wanted to say, but he refused to spit it out. Did he have unrequited feelings for me? Was he trying to silently send his affections my way?
I was still wondering what his deal was when we arrived at the manor and I led everyone into the spacious meeting room.
“Will black tea be acceptable?” Till asked one of our guests.
“Yeah. And pancakes, too.”
“Understood.” She was definitely putting on a bit of an act, playing the cool beauty while she took orders.
Ah, she just stumbled. That’s what happens when you don’t act naturally. I kept watching Till’s exit from the room until Jalpa loudly cleared his throat and glanced my way. I quickly corrected my posture.
Before me was a large round table, on the far side of which sat King Dino. On his right sat Jalpa, Count Ferdinatto, and Panamera, and to his left were Count Ventury and what appeared to be his faction of nobles. For my part, I was next to Panamera. Accompanying the eight of us who sat at the table were our commanders and a handful of other relevant nobles, who sat in chairs behind us to observe the council.
Honestly, it was stuffier than a sauna. Dee and Khamsin, who were on standby behind me, didn’t help. And Panamera’s arrival brought us up to a grand total of three women. How sad.
Jalpa gave the people seated behind us a brief rundown of the talks so far, then asked, “Are there any questions?”
Panamera spoke up. “I’m well aware that this is a blitzkrieg and that we aim to avoid the territory facing Scudet, given the likelihood that Yelenetta is strengthening its defenses there. Yelenetta cannot afford to lose in its next attack, so we assume their forces will try to retake Scudet. This is a prediction, however: things might not pan out that way. I have heard that Count
Ferdinatto’s forces only barely withstood the attack on their territory. Rather than retake Scudet, Yelenetta might target Count Ferdinatto, Marquis Fertio, or even Baron Van’s territory.”
Hearing this alternative perspective, the king looked my way. “I have considered those possibilities, but I judged them unlikely after I received the reports about how Yelenetta’s forces were repelled in our cities. Am I correct in this, Baron Van?”
Surprised to be passed the baton, I said, “Ah, yeah,” without thinking. I looked around the table at everyone seated there in turn.
“First, we captured Prince Unimog, the commander of the military force that invaded my territory. We got him to tell us their plan: take Scudet, then use it as a foothold to take Marquis Fertio’s territory. We also managed to apprehend Prince Freightliner during the battle to retake Scudet, and he gave us info on the current state of Yelenetta’s military forces.”
“You what?” Ventury cut in. “Did you not retreat? I recall you saying you were not going to the front lines.”
Of course he’d remember something I didn’t want him bringing up. I grimaced and explained, “We retreated but kept an eye on the battle from afar, spotting a fleeing enemy squad. As it turned out, Prince Freightliner was the squad’s commander.”
“Mm… And you defeated their squad with so few soldiers? No, that’s right, your ballistae inflicted fatal wounds on the earth dragon. With those…” Ventury trailed off thoughtfully, so I turned back to the others.
“With Prince Freightliner’s cooperation, we acquired a lot of useful intel. Firstly, the cornerstones of Yelenetta’s new armaments are what they refer to as ‘black balls,’ explosives they obtained from the central continent. They do not require magical energy of any kind, which means that, using them, nonmagic users can produce attacks on par with a mid-level fire mage. Yelenetta has given these black balls to its standard infantrymen and split them into smaller groups that can each do a lot of destructive damage.” “Black balls…” Panamera murmured.
“So that’s what those explosives are?” asked Ferdinatto. Both he and Panamera had participated in the last battle. “They are most certainly dangerous. That Yelenetta’s soldiers can produce what is essentially fire magic through the simple act of throwing a small projectile is alarming.”
Hearing this, the other nobles in the room grimaced and began to mutter amongst themselves. “A weapon like that…”
“It’s terrifying that anyone can use it.”
They were quicker on the uptake of the practical uses of gunpowder than I’d expected. It seemed like their fear of fire magic put things into perspective for them.
Now then, how was I going to get my hands on the stuff? There were all sorts of fun things I could do with gunpowder…
“What about the wyverns and dragons?”
“They’re controlled by marionette mages, no? In that case, if we strike at the mages…”
“We all know that a marionette mage’s abilities depend largely on the mage’s compatibility with the target and their total amount of magical power. It is unlikely that they have too many wyverns and dragons on hand.”
Before I knew it, the council had moved on to the next topic. While they understood the threat of Yelenetta’s new weapon, they didn’t introduce a motion to discuss getting their own hands on the stuff. Maybe my appraisal of their understanding was too generous.
Gunpowder wouldn’t just give us the ability to create firearms and bombs; it would also allow us to mine with explosives and make traps that were closer to modern-day equivalents. Depending on how creative we got, there were all kinds of ways to use gunpowder.
My mind raced as the council carried on. Eventually the king shot me a look. “That about sums up our plans. Baron Van, what do you think?” he asked, seeking my opinion on the matter.
Without me noticing, the discussion had progressed from the enemy threat to our invasion strategy. I cleared my throat once. “This is essentially a surprise attack. Our first priority is to pass through the mountain path as planned and dispatch Chivalric Orders into Yelenetta’s territory. However, given that the mountain path is long and narrow and considering the number of soldiers we’ll march through it, there’s a strong chance that monsters will attack.
“As such, I believe it crucial to build safe, temporary bases of operations along the road. And in the interest of moving quickly and safely, I recommend using the war wagons that the Bell & Rango Company sells. I can lend you ballistae for free, too, so that you can bring them straight into battle with Yelenetta.” His Highness and Panamera both started cackling.
“Ha ha ha! Quite the salesman, aren’t you?” said the king.
“If you made that your primary occupation, you’d be rich!” exclaimed Panamera.
My old man heaved a sigh, a sour expression crossing his face. Ventury took this interruption as a chance to speak. “You say Yelenetta has a fortress designed to seal off this mountain path, but should we really be basing our plan around information obtained from enemy royalty?”
The other nobles nodded silently, apparently also wondering whether our intel from Unimog was legitimate.
“Fear not,” said the king. “Prince Unimog was not particularly bright, but we pressed him hard. He was not lying to us.”
Several people went pale, while others nodded loyally. It seemed like the king’s interrogation methods were effective in more ways than one.
For the record, Freightliner had been cooperative from the start. In fact, he kept going on about how much he wanted to become a permanent resident of Seatoh Village, so Esparda was currently in the process of training him as a civil servant.
Using the large map spread out on the table, the king explained where the bases would be located.
“First we shall purchase those war wagons from Baron Van, enter the mountains, and create a base of operations. Since the path is long and arduous, we will be establishing three bases in three separate locations.
“When Yelenetta’s forces passed through, they did so with wyverns that kept the other monsters at bay. Unfortunately, we do not have that option. As such, we will build multiple durable bases in close proximity to one another. Doing so will require the skills of adventurers who have long experience working on roads like this.”
He pointed to the places on the map that were up for consideration.
“Now, about the bases. I would like your aid, Baron Van. You are capable of swiftly creating fortifications on site, and your structures are strong enough to withstand attacks from large monsters.” All eyes turned to me.
Wait, this wasn’t the plan. Now I suddenly have work to do? And not easy work, either! It’s hard work being the guy who can make the impossible possible. Everyone wants a piece of little Van…
“As you wish,” I said promptly. Several of the noblemen in the room looked shocked at my response. Heh heh, I better make something cool. Something that’ll really blow their minds.
After only another thirty minutes, our war council came to a close. Whenever the king told us what we had to do, everyone started discussing how to make it happen. Nobody could say no to the man. But maybe that was normal for a monarchy.
Ultimately, though, the king’s relationship to the nobility was irrelevant. The first item on my to-do list was to come up with a base design that was easy to construct.
Let’s see… How to make a base with minimal effort…

“Huh? Then you do not have to go to battle?” Arte posed this question to me in the office after the conclusion of the war council.
I nodded, smiling, and picked up a wood block. “Last time around, I told the king that I didn’t have the manpower to send people into battle because my territory was still growing. So this time, I’m cooperating with the invasion by serving as a relay base of sorts.”
“Is that so?” Arte sounded surprised. “I would not have expected the king to accept that, given how much he prizes military might.”
I showed her the map, which displayed a winding mountain path and a Yelenetta fortress a short distance away. “In exchange, I have to help his army invade at full power. I’ve made a bunch of war wagons equipped with ballistae, which is all well and good, but the bases are the real issue here. I was thinking of crafting foldable containers…”
“Containers?” she replied with a tilt of her head.
There was a knock at the door, and Till and Khamsin entered. Khamsin said,
“Lord Van, the tour of Seatoh Village has concluded.”
I had asked them to give the war council participants a tour around the village. “Thanks a bunch. You guys did great.”
“I’m exhausted,” Till said. She sounded it, too. She must have been tense the entire time. It wasn’t often that a maid had to deal with such important people directly. I shot her a wry smile.
“His Highness and Master Jalpa went to see the dwarven forge,” Khamsin told me, “and Lord Ventury went to inspect the ballistae. The others are looking
over the campgrounds and handling supply procurement.”
“I see, I see.”
I was molding the wood block in my hand like clay while I listened to Khamsin’s report. The image I had in my head was of a foldable container, designed so that the walls could collapse inward. With each wall collapsed in the proper order, the box would end up as a neat stack of boards; when each board was raised in the correct order, it would form a proper container. In my mind, I made the box longer than it was wide, with a door attached to the shorter side of the container.
It was a simple structure. I turned the wood block into a small prototype, and Arte and the others observed with looks of glee as I unfolded and collapsed it.
“That is fascinating,” said Arte.
“And it won’t break?” Khamsin asked.
I pointed at the interior of the box. “There are gaps between the top and bottom boards, so if you snap them into place, they don’t go anywhere.” Khamsin nodded earnestly. “But it’s way too heavy right now, so they’ll have to be about the size of a carriage. Either I take out part of the side wall and make it so that they can connect to one another, or I divide them into skeleton frames and boards and have them put together on site…”
I groaned. Starting from scratch, I made a different type of container, one with a skeleton frame that you plugged the boards into. The foldable container was the simpler of the two designs, but the skeleton frame one provided the most on-site flexibility. I would definitely need to think this over.
“All right, let’s actually test this,” I said, standing up with the small prototype container in my hand. “Wanna try it out?”
My friends looked surprised. “You mean you’re already going to make a fullsized one?” asked Khamsin.
I held up the small box in my hands and nodded. “It’ll be easier to make a choice if we can mess around with a full-sized prototype.”
Arte blinked a few times. Till and Khamsin exchanged glances. But afterward, everyone helped bring me the wood blocks necessary for the project.
In the end, it looked like someone had spilled a gigantic box of children’s blocks all over the road. Not far away were the soldiers’ tents.
“Okay!” I said. “Let’s go with our first option, the folding container!”
“Hell yeah!”
Ortho and his people cheered loudly, raising their hands in the air. The king and the various orders had hired them as guides through the mountain road, guards against monsters, and even scouts. Luckily for them, they had also been hired to help manage the temporary bases. Even with the Chivalric Orders in charge of transportation, the adventurers were shouldering a tremendous amount of the work.
They were also being paid well for it, though, so everyone was super fired up.
With a total of thirty rowdy adventurers—counting Ortho—gathered nearby, the soldiers hanging out by their tents couldn’t help but watch us curiously. The adventurers ignored them and gathered around my prototypes, and I began to issue orders.
“The people on both ends need to lift the top board! Right, right, like that!
Next group, lift the second board and move it to the right… Ah, no, my right! Now push it in! Oh, keep holding the top board up! Right, right! Now raise the third board and push it into the opposite side! Once it locks in, you can let go!”
The multiple containers came together almost simultaneously, producing a freestanding box that acted like a corridor. The onlooking soldiers loudly expressed their admiration.
“Whoa!”
“That was so easy!”
“If that thing is sturdy enough, we won’t be needing tents anymore.”
Their comments were audible from my position, but I ignored them in favor of putting together more containers. “Okay! Now raise the last wall! In order!” “Aaaargh!” The adventurers gritted their teeth and followed my directions. I made my prototype fairly big, figuring the bases would need to be spacious, but the trade-off was that the boards comprising the walls and ceiling were pretty heavy. Fortunately, the adventurers were made of tough stuff, so they managed to put the thing together with no real issue.
The final board already had a door attached to it, so once it was up, the container was complete. An adventurer poked his head out from inside. “Whoa, we already built a whole house!”
It was a scene right out of a commercial, the man’s expression and words included. The other adventurers were no less excited. “For real?!”
“Man, we could use these!”
Due to how simple it was to put the whole thing together, the adventurers were even more impressed than I had anticipated. Maybe they’d be happier if I paid them with container houses instead of cash?
Pleased with how things had gone, I moved on to testing out the skeletonframe-type prototype. Let’s just say it wasn’t popular. Too difficult; easy to screw up; despite the effort required to construct it, the result was still too small… All sorts of complaints came my way. With no other option, I put my efforts into the first version of the base.

The next day, after significant trial and error, I completed my work on the modular container house project. That evening, I whipped up some container houses on the campgrounds and linked them together. Because I’d designed it so that a wall could be removed from each container, it was simple to connect them to one another, creating a fully enclosed space.
When I was done, the containers formed a small base the size of a community center—about forty tatami mats large, give or take. Reasonably big, but not big enough for tens of thousands of soldiers. The structure itself was made from wood blocks, which were very sturdy but much lighter than metal. The real test would be to see how many containers we could pack into a carriage.
I experimented to see how many I could link together, but once the structure was more than ten meters long, I needed to install pillars to prevent its durability from plummeting. Rather than further complicate the design, I decided to instead link together two ten-meter-long bases. Connecting them with what was essentially a hallway allowed me to enlarge the base pain free.
“What do you think?” asked Ortho, impatient and clearly exhausted. I gave him a nod.
“I think it’s good to go. I could make a second and third floor if I wanted to, but that shouldn’t be necessary. Good work, everyone!”
The adventurers pumped their fists in the air. Smiling, I watched them explore the structure that they had put together with their own hands, then began to think about how I would solve my next problem.
Carrying all these container houses would require carriages much larger than those we typically used. It was already getting dark outside, but I decided to get back to work.
This time, I tried to craft a carriage with a truck chassis and large tires able to navigate ditches and uneven roads. I also designed a load-carrying tray for it that could handle large objects.
I was completely absorbed in my work when Till called out my name. She looked troubled. “Um, Lord Van? It’s about time for you to wrap things up.”
“Huh? Oh, my curfew!” A cold chill ran down my spine as I took in Till’s words. It was already dark outside. I had gone through the trouble of having my curfew extended from dinnertime to sunset, but still hadn’t managed to follow the rules. There was no question: I was in trouble. “I-I’m heading home! I’ll handle the rest tomorrow!”
“Good idea!” Till and Khamsin said seriously and in unison. Arte nodded with a pained smile.
A handful of adventurers noticed that something was going on. Frantically, they called out to me, “Lord Van, are you done for today?!”
“What about our reward?!”
Waving both hands at them, I yelled, “Don’t worry! Just come to the manor
later to collect it!” I turned on my heel, but then Ortho stopped me.
“Ah, Lord Van!”
“Hm? What’s up?” I asked impatiently.
Ortho pointed behind me, his expression troubled. “Looks like some of the big shots are on their way over from the adventurers’ town.” “Big shots…?” What’s this all about?
I followed Ortho’s gaze and saw somewhere around twenty people approaching from the road. Jalpa, Ventury, and the king led the charge, with the other nobles close behind.
Ventury walked ahead of the group, toward the container housing prototype.
“Oh! Another building from nowhere!”
The other nobles began to inspect the structure. Amidst all of this, only the king approached me directly.
“I received a report that you had made something interesting, so I came to see for myself,” he explained, looking excited. With a smirk, he turned his gaze on the container housing. “I have yet to see how defendable this will be, but it is certainly intriguing. Could you show me how they are constructed?”
“Ah, absolutely. Ortho, are you okay to build one for me?”
Ortho replied in the affirmative and, with the help of three other people, whipped up a finished container house. After all the practice they’d had, they were wizards when it came to constructing the things. The whole process only took them about three minutes, start to finish.
The king and the others watched it happen, wide-eyed.
“They’re even faster to build than our tents. I can’t believe it.”
“They also look quite sturdy.”
“This is more than enough for a temporary base.”
I heard the nobles’ comments, and because they happened to have their attention directed my way, answered them with a simple explanation. “You can connect these container houses together, allowing you to make bases that fit the constraints of the terrain. If there’s open space on the side of the road, you can also use them as safe shelter or places to rest. I imagine they would be difficult to transport with normal carriages, so I’ve prepared vehicles specifically for container transportation. A single carriage will be able to carry up ten temporary bases.”
The king nodded, satisfied by my work. Some of the nobles who were impressed by the container houses turned their gazes on me, the creator. “What child could ever think up something like this?”
“I thought Baron Van was not even ten years of age.”
“I heard he was sent off to the border because he lacked elemental magic…”
They kept their voices low, but those who overheard them turned to look at Jalpa, who frowned, clearly feeling their judging eyes. Things went on like this for a while, with the nobility gossiping about Jalpa and me.
Ha ha ha! Serves you right, Pops, I thought, smirking.
But then Esparda appeared from behind my father, wearing an even more troubled expression than usual.
“Ah, Esparda! I was just telling them about the plans for the temporary bases,” I said, deeply grateful to the bigwigs for this reasonable excuse for breaking curfew.
Esparda nodded. “Yes, please feel free to prioritize your work. However, your curfew passed well before the king made his way here, so accordingly, an additional two hours of studies will be waiting for you when you are finished.”
“You gotta be kidding me!”
Was it improper to whine like a child in front of His Highness and the rest of the nobility? Certainly. Did I care? Not really!

The next day, to raise morale, the king offered the troops words of encouragement. “Brave knights of our kingdom,” his address began.
The foot soldiers were getting especially fired up, proving just how powerful a tool charisma could be. Personally, though, none of this resonated with me. I just wanted to hole up in my village.
The king’s address concluded with some violent words of encouragement, which he delivered with a ferocious smirk: “We will complete our preparations today! You are the elite! Rest well and prepare to march. Tomorrow, we deal a decisive blow to Yelenetta!”
The soldiers unleashed their battle cries. His Highness was awesome at handling his men. Made sense, considering how much he’d expanded his territory through warfare.
When the timing was right, I gave Till the signal to step forward. “Okay. Till, you’re up.”
“Right!” she said. Behind her were multiple girls wearing maid attire, operating in two-person cells.
The fire platforms we’d prepared on the road beforehand lit up. With the sun beginning to set, red flames illuminated the road, giving the whole thing a magical vibe. The soldiers seemed confused, but the king and the other nobles merely observed in silence.
The tradition in Scuderia was to treat soldiers to a lavish feast before sending them off into battle. It was a kind of departure ceremony, even if it differed from the ones I was familiar with. But because these feasts were held right before the soldiers headed into battle, they were usually limited to simple meals and a single glass of alcohol—the best that could be readied at a fortress or a campground on the front lines.
This time, though, they were here in Seatoh Village. I’d decided to give them the send-off of a lifetime. In fact, I was the one who made the recommendation to the king.
“Are you certain that you can adequately feed tens of thousands of soldiers in such a small territory?” Jalpa asked.
I only had one thing to say in reply to daddy dearest. “I’ve got this.” After all, I had a huge surplus of monster meat to get through. There was only so much I could dry for storage, so this was the perfect opportunity to clean house.
By this point, we’d held dozens of barbeques in Seatoh Village, so everyone knew exactly what needed to be done. Having confirmed that preparations were complete, I issued the order to Khamsin. “Ready the meat!”
“Yessir!”
Like Till before him, Khamsin stepped forward with a clear and concise response. Behind him, members of the Seatoh Chivalric Order pulled carts packed with monster meat. They dashed down both sides of the road while the soldiers watched, astonished.
Once everyone was in position, they began to load each barbeque platform with meat. A delectable aroma wafted through the area. Soon it wouldn’t be only the soldiers fighting back drool; the nobles wouldn’t be able to contain themselves either. After all, this was large monster meat, a rare delicacy even in the royal capital. On top of that, we used the best salt and pepper money could buy, plus my homemade sauce.
It was unfortunate that there was no rice, but we did have bread and spirits, offering in-development whiskey, grape wine, and even beer in large quantities. We had also acquired tons of alcohol for the occasion from the Mary Chamber of Commerce and the Business Guild.
Sidebar: my yakiniku sauce was made of wine, garlic, an apple-like fruit, an onion-like vegetable, black pepper, and salt. Personally, I was pleased with how it turned out.
With everyone transfixed by the sight and smell of the barbeque coming together, Till and Khamsin informed me that preparations were complete.
“Your Highness, we are ready,” I said.
The king nodded and turned to his men. “Loyal knights! Today’s ceremonial feast is more luxurious than ever before! Normally I could offer you only plentiful rations, but today, Baron Van gifts you with rare delicacies! Eat to your heart’s content!”
The nobles took this as the sign to tell their commanders to begin the feast. An instant later, tens of thousands of soldiers rushed the food.
If you told me that was what war looked like, I would have believed you. The men were tearing into their meat like hungry beasts.
“Please take your time!”
“We have more of Lord Van’s sauce here!”
“This sauce is incredible!”
“Yeah, but the meat is great too!”
The soldiers devoured their food, unaware that I had held back the best monster meat we had. I was glad to have finally cleared out our storage.
“Shall we indulge as well?” the king asked, turning around. But then his gaze caught on the feasting soldiers. “Baron Van, what type of monster meat is this? The soldiers look even happier than I anticipated.”
I could tell that Jalpa and the others who stood behind the king agreed.
“Hmm, if I remember correctly, we’re serving scaled wolf, armored lizard, black boar… Ah, and sanguine tiger meat,” I replied, thinking back on what we’d hunted.
The nobles couldn’t believe it. “Sanguine tiger, you say?!”
“Impossible. Only one sanguine tiger has been seen in the kingdom in the last twenty years.”
“It is said to be a powerful beast that even rivals the strength of a dragon…”
I simply nodded and gave them a pained smile. “Yes, the sanguine tiger does appear to be uncommon. We’ve only taken down five so far. That being said, they were each about ten meters in size, so they made for easy ballista targets.
I will say, I was pretty surprised the first time I saw one.”
I was unable to discern how any of them felt about my response; even the king looked dumbfounded.
“The sanguine tiger managed to nearly annihilate an entire city before it was defeated by two first-class elemental mages and a thousand elite royal knights…” the king said before concluding with an exasperated chuckle.
An hour or so passed. The king and his followers all had beer or wine in one hand and large chunks of meat in the other. The foot soldiers continued digging into their food like starved beasts even then.
“I know we have lots of booze, but man, can these guys eat,” I whispered to Arte, who sat next to me, as I picked at my own meal. I was just about done with the meat and ready to move on to some cookies when someone abruptly stepped away from the group of nobles.
Slightly hunched over, he headed straight toward us. It was Count Ferdinatto, a man who never seemed to have much self-confidence. In the same way that Arte was an ephemeral beauty, so too was her father a handsome older man.
“Good evening. Might I have a minute of your time?” Count Ferdinatto asked, stealing a glance at Arte.
“Of course. What do you need?” I rose to my feet, but Ferdinatto raised one hand and shook his head apologetically.
“Forgive me. I, um, meant Arte,” he said quietly, looking at his daughter.
To call Arte’s relationship with her father complex would be a wild understatement. The young girl curled in on herself as soon as he said her name. She had already been looking down as she ate, but now her posture was even worse. Ferdinatto watched her sadly, then turned his gaze on me.
“I understand that it might be pointless, Baron Van, but there is something I would like to say to you,” he began. “I have never been able to be a father to Arte. When she was born, my own father was ill, and I had only just become the lord of our territory. At the same time, Count Fertio, who had become a marquis, was stripping part of our land from us.”
He glanced at Arte, who was completely still, before continuing.
“While it may seem from the outside that we noblemen and women live vivid and prosperous lives, there is a deep, shameful darkness that lurks below the surface of our society. When a noble begins to rise in power, other nobles, merchants, and even mercenaries are drawn to them. When a house is on the decline, however, things quickly become tragic. They’re driven down the pecking order of a faction, removed from important offices… It even becomes difficult to do business with merchants and mercenaries. And sometimes, vassals who had supported the house for years decide to leave.”
His tone and words were depressing, encompassing a mix of disappointment
in himself, anger toward others, and even jealousy. It must have been hard for him. From what he said, it sounded like his father may have passed away out of nowhere. The position of lord of a high-ranking noble house came with heavy responsibilities; to keep your house from falling, you had to stand out on the battlefield, in social spheres, and even in matters of business.
That kind of hardship was impossible to measure, and I’m sure he did everything he could to eliminate any factors that could potentially damage his house. Unfortunately, one such factor happened to be Arte, who possessed a magic aptitude unbefitting of nobility.
But that isn’t Arte’s fault. She did nothing wrong.
As soon as that thought ran through my mind, I found myself incapable of holding back. “I understand you have been through a great deal. However, just because you were busy, just because things were hard for you, that doesn’t excuse ignoring your daughter. It was difficult for you. It was painful for you. But none of those things absolve you of the sin of neglecting a girl you should have protected. There is no walking back what you have done.”
Even I knew how uncommon it was for me to speak so forcefully. Ferdinatto and Arte both seemed startled, but I had no intention of stopping now that I was on a roll.
“Lord Ferdinatto, you might think that my opinion is irrelevant because of my age, but as someone who cares about his family, I want you to listen. The scars on Arte’s heart will never fully heal. She will never truly forget what was done to her. That doesn’t mean that those scars can’t be partially healed, however. It doesn’t mean her pain can’t be alleviated.”
I looked at Arte, who wore a concerned expression on her face. Was this a mistake? In too deep to stop now, I continued.
“There is only one thing you can do as her father, and it is not too late. You need to look Arte in the eyes and listen to what she has to say. She might not have confidence in herself, but believe me, she is a tremendously kind, thoughtful, and wonderful young lady. You need to recognize and acknowledge that.”
I took a breath and stared at him. He stared back with wide eyes and an expression colored in deep regret.
“Those certainly were not things that a child, or even a new baron, should have said. However, your words are true. I…have been foolish.” He turned to his daughter. “Arte, if you do not wish to answer me, you need not say anything. Not long ago, when my territory was invaded by Yelenetta, a group of allies appeared and saved us. They possessed long-range arrows of the sort that Baron Van might have developed, and the enemy was pushed back by two knights who moved in ways that humans could not move.”
A complex expression crossed Arte’s face. I chose to remain quiet, and a moment later, Ferdinatto shook his head, then bowed deeply to Arte.
“I heard that this group flew the banner of House Ferdinatto. Only someone belonging to our house would do such a thing. Thank you, Arte. And I am so sorry.”
Hearing this expression of remorse and gratitude, Arte covered her mouth and began to cry, incapable of articulating her feelings in words. Her father watched as she sobbed, then shifted his gaze to me.
“As nobility, we have been so tied down in appearances and received knowledge about magical aptitudes that we have treated our children cruelly and unreasonably. In this regard, Marquis Fertio is no different. Yet here we are, being saved by those very same children… How ironic.” He heaved a tremendously heavy sigh, paused a moment, then resumed. “Going forward, I will provide you with aid whenever you require it. This is an official vow that I make as the head of House Ferdinatto. Even should your marriage with Arte fall through, I will never break this vow.”
Arte twitched in response to his words, looking at me with tears streaming down her cheeks. I gave her a sly smile and placed a gentle hand on her back. “Don’t worry, that won’t happen. As long as she doesn’t dump me, anyway.” “I-I would never!” Arte squeaked, panicked.
Ferdinatto looked down at her with wide eyes. “Ha ha ha! I see, I see! I hadn’t realized that the two of you were already so close! What a relief!” He chuckled, then looked at Arte more gently. “Let us talk, if it isn’t too late. I do not care if you curse me or anything else. Please, just let me hear your voice.”
Arte nodded, the tears still flowing. “Yes, of course!”
I watched the two of them, feeling that they had truly become father and daughter for the first time.

Just before the departure ceremony, Arte and Ferdinatto had awkwardly met each other’s eyes and smiled at one another. But after the barbeque concluded, they had a long conversation, trying to make up for lost time as father and daughter. In the end, they were finally able to offer one another earnest smiles.
The king, Jalpa, Ventury, Ferdinatto, and the rest of the upper nobility stood on the simple stage I had created. Accompanying them were members of the lower nobility who would command a portion of the troops, like Panamera. And for reasons that escaped me, I was on stage too.
The king gazed at the Chivalric Order members before him and praised their valor. Jalpa and the others also commended their skill and determination. Essentially, this ceremony was intended to raise the morale of each soldier and build their confidence. Since they’d eaten and drunk their fill the night before as if they were at a massive banquet, their motivation must have been off the charts.

I gazed, lost in thought, at the king’s back right up until the end of the ceremony. That was when the king said, “My elites! If you wish to experience another feast like the one last night, then crush Yelenetta and return here alive!”

This was new. I’d never heard of a king using a banquet to motivate his troops, but to my surprise, it worked. The men cheered loudly, and the king flashed me a grin. Was this his way of telling me to go hunt some monsters and get ready for another barbeque? Either way, we’d find ourselves with a full stock of monster meat again after the next two weeks.

Aware that I would have no problem delivering on another feast, I smiled back at him. The king seemed a little surprised by my silence, but he recovered quickly, nodding and drawing his sword.

“We march!”

The soldiers cried out bravely. As planned, Count Ventury’s Chivalric Order led the way as the march began.

A group of adventurers approached the stage: Ortho, Pluriel, Kusala, and the others. “We’re off, Lord Van!”

“I’m counting on you guys.”

Ortho and the others had been hired by the king to scout the path ahead and neutralize any approaching monsters, but despite that heavy responsibility, they were grinning. These adventurers had lived in Seatoh Village for quite some time, and each was equipped with weapons, armor, and shields handcrafted by yours truly. Not only that, they’d also been fighting through the dungeon and the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range, places known for their nests of powerful monsters.

They were confident in their skills for a reason.

“I’ll be up in the vanguard keepin’ tabs on things. You can rest easy, Lord Van,” Kusala said.

Ortho and the others looked bewildered. “You do realize you’re a hotel owner, right? Should you really be here, big reward or not?”

“You’ve always been quick to gain weight. I’m pretty sure you’ve rounded out.”

Kusala responded to their jeers with boisterous laughter, making his round stomach shake. This was definitely a man who had gotten too big for his britches. “C’mon, really? Why are you guys being so mean? I know I chopped off a giant chunk of debt with all those noble folks staying at my hotel, but that ain’t no reason to act jealous.”

Yes, Kusala always did his job and did it well, but too much confidence and pride could be dangerous in his line of work. I whispered, “Kusala, I’m not sure you realize this, but people who talk about the future before heading into danger are usually the ones who get swallowed whole by dragons. Be careful, okay?”

His party looked at him. With stoic expressions, Ortho and Pluriel backed me up. “Oh, that’s right. Loads of folks who talked about getting married or opening a shop after a job have died during gigs.”

“That’s true!”

Kusala kept smiling, but he began to tremble. “N-now, now! None of that! Ha ha ha! You’re quite the jokester, little lord!” He fell silent, fear tightening its grip on him. I gave him a sympathetic look.

All right, now this is the right level of tension. With a nod, I saw the adventurers off.

When I looked to my side, I spotted Ferdinatto descending from the stage to speak to his commander, only to be stopped when Arte called out to him. “Uum… Please be careful…” she said.

Ferdinatto blinked, surprised by his daughter’s concern for him, then gave her a soft smile. “I will, Arte. See you later.”

The two of them still were acting kind of awkward, but I got the sense that they were being considerate toward one another in the way that fathers and daughters ought to. Panamera, who was watching their exchange with a look of relief, pulled up next to me.

“You did something again, didn’t you?” she asked. “Anyone who knew these

two before would be shocked to see what’s happening right now.”

I shook my head. “It wasn’t me. I think Arte changed her father’s thinking all on her own. She worked extremely hard to take back his territory without my help. She’s the one who fought off Yelenetta.”

Panamera chuckled. “My word. There is never a dull moment around you, boy!” she said, flashing me a jubilant smile.