Panamera

NOT EVEN A MONTH AFTER HIS MAJESTY RETURNED to the capital, I received word that he had reassembled the Chivalric Orders and departed. The messengers were swapping horses and running through day and night, though, so we still had time before he arrived.

“How are preparations going here?” I asked the commander, who smiled confidently at me.

“Including our reinforcements, we have five hundred soldiers ready! Our supplies are in good shape, too!”

I nodded. “Excellent. It will take us two weeks of travel to get there. We should be able to stop at Seatoh Village and resupply.”

With the ballista and machine bows we’d purchased from Van, eliminating bandits and large monsters no longer ran the risk it once did. Consequently, we had managed to acquire a significant number of treasures and rare materials without suffering many casualties; buying more arrows from Van wouldn’t constitute a significant financial loss.

“Hmm,” I murmured, “His Majesty asked me what sort of reward I desire. I should be able to ask for my own territory now.”

The commander’s expression stiffened; he was still hesitant about the whole thing. At times it could be a burden to be a member of the nobility, given all the obligations that came with the title. First were the conflicts between opposing factions of high-ranking nobles. Over the last few decades, the number of high-ranking nobles had remained unchanged. Putting aside members of the royal family who had relinquished their right to the throne, there were four marquis and counts in the capital and another two or three scattered across the land.

Among the lords of the various territories, charged with protecting those lands in the king’s name, were marquis and counts with military accomplishments to their names; they were charged with using their strength to govern much larger areas. In times of emergency, they also received special privileges. Essentially, in an emergency, these high-ranking nobles could take control of the nearby low-level nobles at their own discretion. In situations like that, the nobles possessing territory were at least able to voice their own opinions, but someone like me, with no territory to her name, had no right to say anything. In the case of this war, I could be charged with treason for ignoring the orders of a high-ranking noble.

Low-ranking nobles kept constant tabs on the nobility who outranked them, seeking an opportunity to supersede them. I was no different.

“I refuse to follow the orders of some overweight middle-aged men and risk my life for them,” I whispered, dropping my gaze to the palms of my hands. I may have been a noble, and a powerless one at that, but my hands were rugged from all the swords I had swung throughout my life. I clenched my fists, then raised my head. My lips curled into a smile. “I will climb the ladder with my own power. I will be no one’s pawn.”

The commander began to laugh.

“What wonderful ambition. However… Lady Panamera, even if you acquire territory, Marquis Fertio will be close by. I do not think things will be easy for you.”

Holding territory meant drawing attention to oneself, and as a member of House Ferdinatto’s faction, I would undoubtedly draw the marquis’s fury. In that case, I might find myself dispatched to one of the fiercer battlefields. The nobility had a penchant for hammering in the nail that stuck out; that was why my commander was worried.

I snorted. “I’ll be working you to the bone. Just put your faith in me,” I said, grinning.

The commander blinked a few times, then burst into laughter. “Ha ha ha! Well, well, perhaps you forget, but I have already sworn my loyalty to you. Use me however you need to make your ambitions a reality.”

My smile deepened. “Well said.”

It was time to fight. This battle would determine just how far up the ladder I could climb.

 

Count Ferdinatto

I RECEIVED THE FULL REPORT AND ROSE TO MY FEET. “So His Majesty has departed,” I said.

“The next battle will be a large one, no?” my wife asked. “Will you be okay?”

I pulled my chin in and sighed. “We will begin to march into enemy territory. Our first invasion in decades. The enemy will likely strengthen their defenses and prepare traps for us. Our house suffered the greatest losses in the last set of battles, and we lack the capacity to prepare properly for this next fight…but wemust participate if our house is to continue. We must produce results.”

I sighed again, and my wife frowned, casting her gaze downward. When she spoke, it was with a tinge of embarrassment in her voice. “Baron Van will be on the battlefield as well, yes? You said he was exceptionally good at producing weapons… Is there any way we could borrow some of his?” She hesitated, then added, “Our daughter is with him, so…”

Anger surged in me at her words, but I resisted the urge to yell. I took a few light breaths, then said calmly, “A count could never request aid from a new member of the nobility. And we did not send our daughter there to form an alliance. We must not forget that.”

I cast my gaze out the window, toward the castle city, lit red by the evening light. It was significantly less active than it used to be. I sighed and clenched my fists.

“It is my powerlessness that has lost our house its influence and strength…but this battle is a great opportunity.”

My wife furrowed her brow and hung her head low. “I understand,” she said, nodding.

It had been many years since I first became the head of the house, yet here I was, still causing my wife grief. I was ashamed and angry at my own behavior. Now was the time to display my power, even if it meant risking my life.

Meanwhile, despite only recently establishing his own house, Van had accumulated a frightening number of accomplishments. The magic that allowed him to create ballistae and machine bows certainly factored into that, but so did the fact that he knew how to make proper use of them. That he could build a fortress faster than you could blink was undoubtedly one reason for the trust His Majesty put in him.

If we made progress in our invasion of Yelenetta, we would find ourselves in situations where we were disadvantaged in terms of geography, supply routes, or even sheer numbers. Occupying Yelenetta’s fortresses and strongholds would be one thing; whether we could use them properly was another question entirely. There was also the risk that we’d be attacked mid-march and suffer tremendous casualties.

One thing was clear: Baron Van would earn himself more accomplishments in this invasion than anyone else. That means we

must aim for second or third, I thought. But that would mean outdoing Marquis Fertio.

I winced as that arrogant man’s face appeared in my mind.

Despite his fierce disposition, he possessed the strategic mind necessary to dominate a battle. Put bluntly, we would lose to him eight times out of ten on an open battlefield. To outdo him, we would have to either break down the front gates of an enemy stronghold before he could do so himself or take the head of a general-class enemy. Luckily, these were the sorts of battles in which Van would never participate.

Pondering this, I remembered something my wife said earlier. I turned to her. “Didn’t you say that a pair of frightful knights defeated

Yelenetta’s army when they invaded the city?”

My wife nodded, a serious expression on her face. “Yes. I’m ashamed to admit that I was unable to see them directly, but they waved the banner of House Ferdinatto. Two knights clad in silver armor cut enemy troops in half.”

“It sounds too absurd to even be a heroic tale. Fighting in fullbody armor is no mean feat, and a single cavalryman riding into a group of a thousand knights is a suicide mission. Yelenetta’s forces numbered in the tens of thousands…” I let out a breath. “This is only conjecture, but I don’t believe that those two knights were human.”

My wife cast her gaze down, her expression darkening with guilt. “Long ago, Arte put on a display of her magic for me by controlling a marionette. At the time, I was furious that she showed aptitude for marionette magic, which is considered so vile. I ended up yelling at her…” She trailed off, biting her lip and looking out the window as she tried to fight back tears.

“When I first met Baron Van,” I said quietly, “he rebuked me harshly. He said that the wounds on Arte’s heart would never completely heal, but that they could still be treated. He wanted me to open my ears and truly listen to what she had to say. It might be too late, but if you truly wish to apologize to Arte as her mother, then I would be willing to take you to Seatoh Village one day.” I turned around as I said these words to find my wife quietly sobbing.

 

At long last I finished building the additional housing and the park. We didn’t have enough books yet so I put the library on the backburner, but I did manage to complete the two-story school and hospital. Oh, and while I was building all of that, Seatoh Village’s lone carpenter actually built a house all by himself; it was nice, pretty cozy. At that pace, he’d be able to build a house every two months. His skills would only improve as he continued to build, and eventually more people would seek his talent.

We already had farmland, businesses, blacksmiths, inns, and restaurants. The adventurers could get us timber, stone, and metals. Soon we’d be able to hire folks as educators, doctors, and nurses. We still didn’t have any seamstresses, but that wouldn’t be the case for long.

Sitting on one of the benches in the new park, I whispered,

“Man, Seatoh Village has really become something else.”

“Did you say something, Lord Van?” Khamsin asked from a short distance away. He must have seen me whispering. I raised my head and watched him swing back and forth on one of the swings I’d crafted; he was moving pretty energetically.

It was his first time using a swing, so he must’ve been having a grand old time. Arte, too, looked like she was having a blast, gently swinging back and forth. And for the record, Till was watching them with clear jealousy in her eyes. She had recently turned nineteen, but that didn’t stop her from wanting to play.

I suppose it isn’t that crazy to want to go back to a more innocent time, I mused, eyeing the three of them.

We were interrupted by a youngster from the Chivalric Order, coming over from the front gates to report in. “Lord Van! A bunch of

Chivalric Orders have… Whoa! What is all of this?!”

“Oh, His Majesty is here? I suppose that makes sense. The faster we get back to invading Yelenetta, the better.”

“Wait, wait, wait. Lord Van, um, I’m fairly sure this garden wasn’t here before. Also, what are those…?”

“Hmm?” I asked, briefly puzzled to hear him call a park with a playground a ‘garden.’ “Oh, the playground equipment? Just so you know, those are only for kids. Nobody over eighteen is allowed to touch them.”

This shocked Till for some reason. She and the young man both looked as if I’d just told them the world was ending. I smirked and quickly modified my rules.

“Okay, fine. Nobody over nineteen. Twenty and ups are forbidden, okay?”

“Awesome!” said the messenger, just as Till said, “Thank goodness!” Their eyes sparkled as they cheered. I guess I should be

happy they’re happy?

“Ah, right,” I said, sitting up from the bench, “I totally forgot: we have visitors.”

This had the effect of snapping the messenger back to reality too. He nodded. “Right! There are at least a few thousand men, potentially even as many as ten thousand!”

“Whew, that’s a ton of people.”

I had Arte and Khamsin stop swinging for the moment so that we could all make our way to the gates. Arte, Khamsin, and Till all looked terribly reluctant to leave the swings behind, but I just smiled at them. As we arrived, I quickly spotted His Majesty’s personal carriage.

“Ooh, Baron Van! Long time no see! Or I suppose not really!”

“Welcome, Your Majesty. I am glad to see you in good health.”

The king descended jovially from his carriage. The horseback knights looked no worse for wear, but the infantrymen around him looked exhausted. It must have been a fast-paced march.

Noticing my gaze, His Majesty smiled and jerked his chin at his soldiers. “We will be departing from Seatoh Village in about two weeks. Until then, I would appreciate it if you could let my elite Royal Chivalric Order rest. At the rear are other Chivalric Orders who joined us en route. You would have my gratitude if you could also offer them somewhere to rest. Additionally, the amount of food they will require will not be insignificant. Do you have reserves?”

“Yes, that won’t pose a problem. I estimated that we might storm Yelenetta in less than two weeks, so I have more than enough food to go around.”

He squinted at me, the corner of his mouth quirking up. “Hoh.

And why is that?”

“Huh? I mean, we invaded enemy territory and took one of their important strongholds,” I explained casually, “so obviously they’ll want to take it back as soon as possible. For our part, as the attackers, we’ll want to get as far into enemy territory as possible before they give up on retaking the stronghold and retreat to a defensive position. I figured you might stay here in Seatoh Village while you reassemble the royal military. I also anticipated that you might draft local farmers and offer them rewards if it meant increasing the amount of time you can spend on this invasion, as much as I’d feel bad for those folks. Time is of the essence, after all.”

His Majesty offered me a strange look, like he was trying not to show his delight. Did I mess up somewhere? I thought, feeling growing concern as I observed him. I’m not even ten yet; please

forgive me if I said something stupid.

Finally, he laughed loudly. “What child thinks like this? You have a tremendous mind for strategy. That being said, you still lack real experience. You are correct that one possible tactic would be to invade Yelenetta with an overwhelming force before they have time to react. However, engaging in repeated battles with tens of thousands of soldiers is unrealistic for both sides, especially when you have to pass through the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range first.”

I nodded. “I see. I suppose that many soldiers would make it difficult.” The stress from that kind of long campaign would be intense, a factor His Majesty had clearly considered.

Thanks to the new road, supplying a military march through the Wolfsbrook Mountain Range wasn’t nearly the problem it once was. After all, the Bell & Rango Company, the Mary Chamber of Commerce, and even the Business Guild regularly used Seatoh Village as a resupply point. It was possible to send supplies through the mountains now. And if I went out there myself, I could produce all kinds of new equipment. The adventurers and the machine bow squad could hunt monsters, too, which meant meat.

At this point, stress really was the biggest factor. I nodded.

Just then, one of the lookouts at the wall ran over to us. “Lord Van, Bell from the Bell & Rango Company has arrived! And for some reason, he’s with Apollo from the Business Guild!”

I blinked. “Huh? Apollo?”

His Majesty, meanwhile, nodded as if this was perfectly ordinary. “The Business Guild, eh? They were slower than I expected,” he murmured. Then he looked back at me and chuckled. “On the way here, we bumped into a caravan composed of the Business Guild and the Bell & Rango Company, but we soon left them behind.”

“Oh, really…? Wait a second. You were traveling with thousands of people! How did you get here so quickly?”

He gave me a big smile and continued to laugh, apparently pleased to have stumped me. “Ha ha ha! Do not underestimate the training my Chivalric Orders undergo! Now then, it seems that someone from the Business Guild has business with you. Surely you do not mind if I sit in on your meeting?”

There was no way to decline. Even Li’l Van, boy genius, could do nothing but nod and smile.

 

Accompanied by a rather boisterous king, I made my way to the front gates where Apollo was waiting. Upon our arrival we were greeted with some ten large carriages packed into the main street.

Surrounding the vehicles were dozens of adventurers, so the area was absolutely stuffed. Even with His Majesty commanding his men to wait outside the gate, our main street was packed to the brim with people.

“Ah, Lord Van!” Bell shouted from within the caravan.

Behind him was Apollo.

“Welcome back.” I waved and walked over, watching as a momentary look of shock ran over Apollo’s face just before he took a knee.

As soon as Bell saw this, he noticed His Majesty behind me. “M-my apologies!” The adventurers around us, watching the two men kneel, followed suit.

Personally, this made me feel like a hotshot, but the reality was that I had the superpowerful token known as “the king” behind me.

I turned around to find His Majesty magnanimously waving a hand. “At ease,” he said.

Apollo stood up first. “Thank you very much. We hurried here, but we were unable to catch up. As is to be expected of Scuderia’s infamous Chivalric Orders!”

“Ha ha ha! Indeed! They are the foundation upon which our might rests, after all.”

Even faced with the king of a huge nation, Apollo easily made small talk. Bell looked speechless. No wonder the Business Guild was such a massive organization, capable of dealing with all the major nations. Apollo looked practiced at dealing with powerful people.

“What has brought you to Baron Van?” His Majesty asked. Apollo looked over at me, adopting a strained smile.

“I’m embarrassed to say it, but the Business Guild has finally decided on a course of action.”

I tilted my head. His Majesty burst into laughter, nodding. “Is that so? In other words, the Business Guild has chosen to forsake Yelenetta?”

“No, no… It’s just, well, doing business with Scuderia is such a promising endeavor that we have decided, for the time being, to put off doing any business with Yelenetta. With heavy hearts, of course.”

“Ha ha ha! It must be difficult to have to play the diplomat with so many nations! Be honest now, I will tell no one: you are not truly putting off business with Yelenetta? Surely there is a great deal of money to be made, selling goods, weapons, and food.”

His Majesty had heard what Apollo wasn’t saying. There was a reason the term “special procurements” existed. It was easy to imagine the Business Guild, with their connections all over the world, making huge money by dipping their toes into all sorts of markets. In other words, the guild was selling Scuderia goods for their supply line while also selling weapons and armor to Yelenetta.

Suddenly, I remembered the black balls. “Apollo, I have a question. Has the Business Guild been selling Yelenetta those black balls?”

He shook his head and smiled. “No, we do not carry that particular weapon. Unfortunately, a single nation has a monopoly over it. We still don’t even know how to manufacture them.”

His Majesty crossed his arms and groaned. “I expected as much. Only a fool would let such a useful weapon fall into the hands of other nations. I do not know how much time or how many resources their manufacture requires, but victory in battle could rely heavily on their supply.”

He narrowed his eyes, his words making the atmosphere tense. At that moment, another new arrival casually entered the mix.

“Well, well,” Panamera said, her beautiful blonde hair swaying back and forth, “if it isn’t His Majesty! I hope you can forgive my tardiness.” The unshakable confidence in her eyes belied her apologetic words. It was that confidence that made the king smirk and nod his head.

“Mm. I sent you word of this before I left the capital. If anything, I am impressed by how quickly you have arrived.” “Well, as it happens, I was eagerly awaiting word from you when your message arrived.”

“Ha ha ha! I expect nothing less from the dauntless Viscount

Panamera!”

Panamera’s invincible smile put His Majesty in an even better mood than before. Watching all of this out of the corner of my eye, I turned my gaze to Bell.

“How’d it go?” I asked, keeping my question as short as possible.

Bell seemed a bit disoriented. “Well, we purchased slaves and did some publicity work in not just the capital, but also two large cities we passed through. We ended up recruiting a group of merchants who want to start businesses, former adventurers who want to become knights, and even some mercenaries. Including the slaves, we now have a total of two hundred people who want to move here.”

“Wow, a whole two hundred? I’ll be able to get more funds from Esparda later, so heads up: when the time comes, I’m going to have you guys go back to the capital. All right, then first things first; let’s feed anyone who is hungry, then bring them to the bathhouse.”

Bell looked relieved to finally receive his next orders from me.

It must have been extremely stressful to be in front of His Majesty. “As you wish.” He bowed and left.

I watched him walk away, then turned to Panamera. “Long time no see, Viscount Panamera. Good luck in the coming battles!”

Panamera let out a breathy laugh. “Leave the fighting to me, boy. By the way, have you developed any new weapons? I would be interested in any prototypes, too.”

Mere minutes since we’d reunited and already she was egging me on about new weapons. The childish look on her face and the twinkle in her eye made me smile. “I’ve had a few ideas, but none of them are workable yet. My older brother Murcia will be participating in the coming battles, so for now I’m preparing a few new weapons, but…”

“Oooh, I’d love to take a look,” she responded. The twinkle in her eyes had practically become a sparkle.

His Majesty cleared his throat from behind her, snapping her to attention. “We have both only just arrived. Let’s not spend all our time chatting here.”

Panamera hastily corrected her posture and bowed, a tinge of embarrassment evident in her actions but none on her face. To the people around us, it must have seemed like she was being courteous.

“Now then, I would like to enjoy Seatoh Village’s wonderful bathhouse. Baron Van, can we use the large one near your manor?”

“Yes, of course. One of my people will show you the way if you wouldn’t mind waiting for just a moment. Khamsin, do you mind?”

“Yes, Lord Van!” Khamsin enthused. He dashed off to fetch the young man who was basically the leader of the guards at the gate. The man was clearly super nervous, even as he bowed deeply to the king.

“Th-th-this way! P-please watch your step!”

“Mm. Baron Van, I am counting on you to take good care of my men outside,” His Majesty said. Then he followed the young man triumphantly.

I watched him leave with Panamera standing next to me, looking shocked. “I cannot believe His Majesty is so relaxed. That speaks volumes of the trust he has in Seatoh Village,” she said with a nod and stroke of her chin.

I turned to her. “Ah, Panamera, my apologies, but His Majesty has asked me to take care of his men. So…”

“Hmm? Just tell them where to set up camp. Then, if you can, guide them to where the commanders and higher ranked officers can stay. Obviously, I’ll be staying here in Seatoh Village. That won’t be a problem, right?” Her explanation was brisk; she seemed raring to get to the bathhouse.

“No, of course not. But…” The troubled look I gave her made her tilt her head. That was something she rarely did.

“…What’s the matter, boy? It is unlike you to be so fidgety.”

I decided to be honest. “It’s just, well, Dee and Esparda aren’t around, so I was hoping you could come with me, is all. Ten thousand is a lot of men, so…”

Frankly, I was scared of going somewhere by myself in the company of only brusque, unfriendly older guys. Panamera’s eyes went wide, and then she burst into laughter.

“Ha ha ha ha ha! Are you serious, boy? You’re scared of the Chivalric Orders?! What happened to your usual boldness? Are you suddenly timid without Sir Dee around?”

She was pointing at me and cackling in front of so many people! I felt my cheeks turning bright red, so I quickly tried to shoot down her words. “N-no, that’s not it at all! It’s just that my Chivalric Order isn’t full of super tough-looking guys. These people never smile, and they have scary looks in their eyes.”

This only added fuel to the fire. Panamera was laughing so hard that she was starting to tear up.

 

The coming military campaign would likely be a long one. I had yet to learn His Majesty’s plans, but speed was going to be key to our invasion, and that meant we would be working with an enormous group of nobles. And if nobility were coming from all over the nation, then we had the perfect opportunity to show them Seatoh Village’s magnificence.

With that in mind, I began thinking up floor plans for a hot spring facility by the lake. For whatever reason, the image I had in my head was of that place from that one super famous animated film. You know, the one where all the gods hung out. The only problem was that I had no idea what its framework was like, so with no other options available to me, I decided to instead visualize a hot springs inn that I had been to before. It wasn’t connected to a lake, but I was going all out, so I decided to have this one protrude over the water.

An interesting bit of architecture, if I did say so myself.

It would be two stories tall and fairly long as buildings went. An open-air bath on the outside of the first floor would give it a nice cozy vibe. The problem was that if I went too hard, construction would take me nearly a week, and we also wouldn’t have enough hot water to go around.

“I doubt the hot springs inn will be ready in time, so I guess I’ll build it once everyone leaves the village,” I whispered to myself.

Up front, Panamera turned her head to look at me. “What is it? If you’re so worried, would you like me to ask His Majesty to join us as well?”

“I swear, that’s not it!”

Panamera chuckled, pleased to have successfully teased me. I pouted, trying to show her I was angry, but she just kept laughing. At this point she was just bullying me.

Maybe I’ll double how much I charge her for weapons…

As I brainstormed ways to retaliate, Panamera turned her gaze from me, still smiling. She looked at the knights forming lines on the side of the road and took a deep breath.

“You have orders from His Majesty!” she yelled. “Chivalric Orders from across the land will convene here, and in the meantime, he wants you all to camp outside the village and rest! We will be discussing supplies and campground locations, so I need all commander-class officers to gather here at once!”

Backed by His Majesty’s will, her words spurred ten thousand people into action…although the way her voice traveled probably didn’t hurt. I had a front-row view of Panamera’s leadership skills at work, and I was impressed. Once the commanders and other nobles had assembled, she quickly selected fifty high-ranking individuals and sent them into the village.

The campgrounds lay between the adventurers’ town and Seatoh Village, so there was no fear of monsters attacking, but knowing Panamera, she probably wasn’t thinking about that. It was more likely that she expected the men to defend themselves if anything went down; they were the ones making camp, after all. Either way, I was happy to have found a way to deal with His Majesty’s insane request.

Panamera smirked at me. “So, boy, how have things been going with Lady Arte?”

Her question was so abrupt it confused me. “Pardon?”

Simultaneously, I heard a short, panicked yelp from behind me. “L-Lady Panamera?!” Arte squeaked in terror, her face apple red.

This, of course, only made Panamera laugh and slap my back.

“Ha ha ha! Something definitely happened, am I right??”

“Uh, Panamera, are you drunk or something? Please stop teasing us.”

She ignored my complaints and kept smacking my back. By this point Arte had taken refuge behind Till, so I was Panamera’s singular punching bag. “Now, now, don’t be upset; I’m just teasing you. Ah, I know! Shall we get something to eat? I would love to hear how things have been going for you both, and I bet that would go well with some fine alcohol.”

“No way. You clearly just want to mess with me.” We kept on that way, bickering, as we returned to Seatoh Village.

 

The next day heralded the arrival of Arte’s father, Count Ferdinatto. Unlike last time, he had a lot of soldiers with him.

When I went to greet him, Ferdinatto poked his head out of a conspicuously large carriage and, noticing me, promptly exited the vehicle.

“It has been some time, Lord Van,” he said. “Arte, have you been well?”

I bowed, smiling at his somewhat clumsy greeting. “Indeed it has, Count Ferdinatto.”

Arte was next up. She greeted him a little bashfully. “It has been a while, Father. Thanks to Lord Van, I have been doing well.”

A warm smile graced Ferdinatto’s face. “I see. I do not know how to express my gratitude toward you, Lord Van.”

“Please, think nothing of it.”

Ferdinatto seemed amused by my easygoing attitude: his shoulders shook with gentle laughter. “Thank you. It means a lot to hear you say that. Truth be told, I was thinking I might try to garner myself the most accomplishments in the coming battles. I will distinguish myself from even you, Lord Van.”

He said this with a fighting spirit I’d never seen from him before. I’m sure he’s been preparing for this.

“Well, I don’t intend to fall behind either! Let us both give it our all.” I smiled and pointed toward the village. “Please, make yourself at home. Arte, would you do the honors?”

I wanted to give them some time together. For a single moment, Arte’s expression tensed, but before long she nodded, having apparently found her resolve. “Of course. Allow me to escort you, Father,” she said.

Ferdinatto beamed at his daughter. “You have my gratitude.” The way they spoke to each other still didn’t exactly feel natural, but they were certainly more like father and daughter than ever before.

I always found managing relationships with nobles to be a pain in the ass, but I had to admit, at that moment things were going swimmingly. I was on good terms with His Majesty, Viscount Panamera and Count Ferdinatto were both my allies, and I seemed to be doing well with Count Ventury. Even Viscount Pinin, who’d initially looked down on me, had become pretty chill.

My only real problem was my own flesh and blood: House Fertio.

I watched Ferdinatto and Arte enter the village, then folded my arms and nodded. “I’m kind of awesome, aren’t I? I mean, I only

just became a baron and started my own house, and look how much

I’ve already done.”

Till smiled widely. “Indeed. I know how hard you’ve been working, Lord Van.” Khamsin nodded vigorous agreement.

“Heh heh, I’m just messing around. I can’t let myself get conceited; people always mess up when they get a big head. I have to be careful,” I said, mostly to remind myself.

I felt a bit embarrassed by their compliments, but internally, I wanted to jump for joy. If someone’s happiness was determined by their environment, then I was the happiest guy alive. Till, Khamsin, and Arte were basically siblings to me, and I was close to Esparda, Dee, Arb, and Lowe too. I had even built good, trusting relationships with the Seatoh Village Chivalric Order and Ortho’s adventurers.

You know what? I am gonna jump for joy! Go Li’l Van! A toast to an awesome life!

So much for remembering to stay humble.

Just then, I spotted one of my messengers running our way, waving. Had someone else arrived?

“Lord Van!” he shouted. “Another Chivalric Order has arrived!

They bear the flag of House Fertio!”

“Ah. Daddy Dearest.” Already here, eh? “There goes all the wind out of my sails…”

But the messenger tilted his head, a strange look on his face. “Actually, the marquis is not with them. There are two noble

carriages in the caravan, but he is not aboard either. Instead, there are two younger men…”

“Huh?” If the head of the house wasn’t appearing in person for such an important battle, then he must have sent his family. “Don’t tell me it’s Jard and Sesto? Is he really using such a crucial battle as their first campaign?” I didn’t mean to say that aloud, where I risked being overheard, but I was startled; this was not common practice.

The messenger watched me for a moment, hesitating, then continued. “Additionally, the soldiers with them don’t appear to be House Fertio’s Chivalric Order. Their equipment lacks uniformity, and they seem more like a group of adventurers.”

“Mercenaries? Huh? What the heck is going on?”

Had Daddy Dearest finally lost it? Or issued orders while drunk or something? I was at a total loss. That man had a way of dumping cold water all over my good mood.