The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road Chapter 132
As the number of people increased, the attitude of the vassals towards rewards for meritorious deeds also changed.
In the past, it was half-joking, but now everyone is serious. There were people like Yumir or Master Ilya who consistently showed no greed, but others wanted to receive as high a ranking as possible.
That’s why it was difficult.
“For now, it’s third place…”
There were four candidates.
Olaf, who calmly commanded the army. Rutger, who diligently carried out evacuation work in the southern territory of Mobrey. Eonia, who assisted by my side and fought in battle. As an extra, Dorofei, who handled administration and supplies while liaising with local nobles.
If none of them were greedy, I wouldn’t have felt burdened in choosing, but that wasn’t the case.
They all seemed to be secretly expecting something.
“Umm, Eo.”
“Yes!?”
“I just called you.”
“Phew…!”
This was precisely when an objective evaluation was necessary.
“…Olaf, you’re third in merit. I heard from the soldiers under your command. It was flawless. You did well.”
“Haha, still made it to the top three, eh?”
“As a reward, I’ll give you the right to three days of vacation. Use it when you need it.”
“Wow! That’s generous!”
Exclamations erupted from among the other vassals. It seems the longing for vacation is the same here as in the modern world.
“Next, second place is… Eo, it’s you.”
Eonia mysteriously takes second place again. I wondered if this is what it means to be the king of martial arts.
“Thank you!”
Since it was clear who would be first, Eo didn’t look gloomy.
“You achieved the feat of wounding the enemy commander Christian Peltz in the first engagement. Well done.”
“Yes!”
“As for the reward… I’ll prepare it soon.”
“Re-reward is not necessary!”
Despite saying that, she seemed expectant.
Rutger, who didn’t make it into the meritorious ranks, couldn’t hide his disappointment. Estelle consoles her father.
“First place is Gaspar. I don’t think there’s any need to explain the merits.”
“Hmph, of course.”
“I haven’t prepared an extraordinary reward, but would five days of vacation rights be okay? Or should I give you some premium alcohol?”
Given Gaspar’s usual behavior, I thought he would readily agree, but that wasn’t the case.
He speaks with a newly serious expression.
“No, there’s one thing I want to request from you as this reward.”
“Request from me?”
“It’s fine if you can’t grant the request, but… I’d like you to if possible.”
“What is it?”
“Let’s talk when we’re alone.”
Judging by his expression, it didn’t seem like a small matter.
I assumed it was about the West and the Diellum tribe of beastmen. There had been a recent civilian massacre by Diellum, after all.
However, it was a completely different story.
When all the vassals had left and we were alone, Gaspar speaks with difficulty.
“This is a request as a man to man, as a father.”
“As a father…?”
“Ars, would you take Yumir as your wife?”
“…!?”
I was momentarily speechless. It was that unexpected.
Gaspar continues.
“I’m worried. About that child living like that forever. Dedicating oneself to someone means being negligent about oneself to that extent.”
“That’s…”
I was only grateful for Yumir’s dedication. I had been looking for ways to repay that dedication, but nothing suitable came to mind.
That’s because Yumir was saying that my happiness was her happiness.
Gaspar seemed to know about that as well.
“You know, I’ve seen many like that. Those who say that dedicating themselves to someone is their joy. Well, I don’t intend to deny her that way of life, but the end of such people is mostly miserable. In the end, they have nothing left for themselves. Yet they don’t know they’re miserable. They believe it’s the only form of happiness and serve their master until death, no matter what happens to them. It might be called a noble death, but I don’t want my daughter to end up like that.”
“So you want me to take her as my wife?”
“Imagine if Yumir married someone else. Do you think she’d be happy? Even if she married another man, she’d still serve you the same way. You’d be her top priority. That would be unfortunate for both Yumir and the man who would be her husband. But you’re different. Since it’s about her, you’d think your happiness is her happiness.”
“That’s… Correct.”
“Right? So if you marry Yumir and become happy, isn’t it killing two birds with one stone? You’ll be happy, and Yumir can be happy too. What do you think, any objections?”
Surprisingly, there were none.
Listening to Gaspar, it seemed this was the only way for the current Yumir to be happy.
“I know you see Yumir as family, but I’d like you to think about it seriously.”
“…No, I don’t just see her as family.”
“Really? That’s fortunate.”
It was my fault.
If I hadn’t entered Ars’ body, Ars wouldn’t have seen Yumir as more than family.
I was different. I saw Yumir as a potential romantic interest.
That’s why my feelings for Yumir were complex and subtle.
One thing for sure was that I had goodwill towards her. Much greater goodwill than what I felt for Estelle or Erina.
“I understand. I’ll think about it seriously.”
“Good. That’s all I wanted. Thank you.”
Gaspar breathes a sigh of relief.
I said I’d think about it seriously, but my decision was already half made.
* * *
The day after I returned to Rainpol, we decided to visit the family home.
Since Wade’s identity had been revealed, it would affect the family as well.
I headed to the family home with Yumir alone.
On the way, I casually asked, “Yumir, are you thinking about getting engaged?”
“Suddenly, what’s that about…?”
“No, just… It’s a bit awkward to say this, but you’re getting a bit older.”
“Young master. You shouldn’t say such things in front of women.”
Yumir rarely scolds me.
She’s entering her thirties next year. In modern times, thirty is still prime age, but in this world it was well past marriageable age.
It wasn’t for nothing that Aggert, who recently greeted the vassals for the first time, called Yumir, Eo, and Master Ilya ‘aunties’.
Master Ilya, who already has a partner, generously brushed it off saying ‘Haha! I am an auntie, that’s true’. But Eonia couldn’t hide her distorted expression. I remember Yumir flinching too.
“If it’s a partner chosen by you, young master, I would agree, but otherwise I have no thoughts on it. Just serving you is already more than enough for me.”
“A partner I chose…”
I’m suddenly reminded of Gaspar’s words that she would only be unhappy if paired with anyone but me.
I was about to talk about marriage prospects with me, but since the Elaine mansion came into view, I swallowed my words for now.
We parked the carriage and entered the mansion, where the twins Elsie and Chelsea came running. Pitter-patter!
They weren’t yet used to walking and fell flat on their faces, bursting into tears.
Mother smiled warmly and picked them both up.
“Welcome back, you two.”
“We’re back, Mother. Where are Father and Brother Max…?”
“They’re waiting in the room. But there’s no rush. Take a breather at times like this. Come on, play with the children too.”
“Haha…”
After playing with the kids, I headed to see Father and Brother Max who were waiting. It was to talk about moving out and enrolling in Fensillon Academy.
Now that Wade’s identity had been revealed, we couldn’t continue living as we had been.
After finishing that discussion, I decided to ask something I’d been curious about for a long time.
“Father. I’d like you to tell me about my fiancée.”
Since the topic of Yumir had come up, I thought I’d cleanly sort out my romantic relationships. As such, I needed to hear about the fiancée Mother had mentioned.
Who could the fiancée be? I waited for an answer, but Father’s eyes widened as if hearing this for the first time.
“Fiancée? What are you talking about?”
“Huh? Mother told me I had a predetermined fiancée… Did you not know about this, Father? What about you, Brother Max?”
Max just shrugged his shoulders.
“Ars having a fiancée. This is the first time I’m hearing of it. Could it be Beryl from the Milstein family?”
“No, I heard it’s not Beryl.”
“Then I can’t think of anyone. It’s probably just something Mother made up because she doesn’t want to send you to another family. You know how much Mother cherishes you. Well, that’s not a concern anymore, so Mother will probably tell the truth now. After all, you’re Wade now. There’s no chance of you becoming a son-in-law adopted into another family.”
“I see, so that’s how it is.”
If that’s the case, I worried for nothing.
Just as I was about to let it go,
“Ah, could it be…!?”
Father let out a cry and his expression twisted.
“Father? What’s wrong?”
Father sighed deeply and then said, “Ars, stay for dinner today. After that, meet with Claire before you go.”
“Did you remember something about the fiancée?”
“Yes. I remembered. Anyway, to think you were seriously worrying about that until now…. Really, you’re hopeless.”
Father shook his head. For me, it was a situation where my doubts were only growing.
After dinner, I was called to my parents’ room.
Mother was sitting with a face full of worry. Father wasn’t there.
“You’re here.”
“Yes, Mother. Um, Father said I could hear about the fiancée, so I came, but…”
“Yes, could you wait just a little? I’ve just called her here.”
“Called her?”
Being able to call someone so quickly, does it mean they live nearby? If that’s the case, the only person I could think of was Estelle. No, Estelle was there when the talk about the fiancée first came up, so it couldn’t be her.
‘Who could it be? Is it one of the girls I knew in Rainpol?’
If that were the case, there were too many to even guess.
Just then, with a knock, Yumir appeared.
I thought Yumir had guided a guest, but there was no one behind her.
“Madam, did you call for me?”
“Yes. Sit here.”
Only then did I start to see the whole picture.
Mother looked at me once, then met Yumir’s eyes and said, “Yumir. I have something important to tell you.”
“Please, say anything.”
“Don’t speak so formally. I always tell you, don’t I? I think of you as a daughter.”
“…”
Yumir smiled silently. She knew Mother’s true intentions well enough.
In the past, my parents had tried to adopt not only me but Yumir as well.
Even knowing what ridicule they would face if nobles adopted a beastkin.
I heard that Yumir adamantly refused, not wanting to cause such trouble for our family. Mother seemed to have been bothered by this ever since.
“I’ve been thinking all along. About how to welcome you into our family when you refuse to be adopted. Not just thinking of you as a daughter, but a way to truly make you my daughter.”
“Madam…?”
Yumir seemed to have sensed the unusual atmosphere by now.
Mother continued, “At first, I thought of connecting you with Miller or Ferge, who are similar in age. But I soon realized. That you would always prioritize Ars. That you would only be unhappy if paired with either of them. So I… Decided to make you Ars’ fiancée.”
“What!?”
I had never seen such an expression on Yumir’s face before, she was so surprised.
‘Mother….’
Mother sincerely wished for Yumir’s, her daughter’s, happiness. And she had come to the same conclusion as Gaspar. That there was only one way for her to be truly happy.
“Th-that, m-me, engaged to the young master?”
Yumir stammered, flustered. I found her appearance quite adorable.
“Y-young master, please say something too. Such a thing…”
Mother turned her gaze to me, seemingly wanting to hear my thoughts as well.
My answer was already decided.
“Yumir, if you’re not against it, I’d very much like it to be so.”
“Young master!?”
“No, even if you say no, I’ll keep trying until you say yes. So let’s not waste time with unnecessary back-and-forth.”
“Uh, ah…”
Even Mother seemed surprised, as if she hadn’t expected me to agree so readily.
Yumir, seemingly excited, snapped with rough breaths, “Young master, you’re taking this too lightly! About me, like a mother…”
“Of course, it would be a lie to say I don’t have such feelings, but I’m properly seeing you as a woman. So don’t worry about that part and just tell me your thoughts.”
“I, I…”
“Well, whatever answer you give, I’ll keep trying until it works out, so it doesn’t really matter.”
“Ugh… Please do that kind of thing with Eonia…”
“Why does Eonia suddenly come up.”
“Be-besides, there’s also Lady Erina and Lady Estelle, isn’t there?”
“I like you more than those two. Well, I’ll have to talk to them soon too.”
A few slaps should do it. Honestly, Estelle is scary, but…
“Won’t you give me some time to think?”
“No.”
I strongly pressed Yumir. I felt like she might run away if I gave her any leeway.
I decided to drive the point home.
Mother was watching with great interest, with a face that said ‘My son is doing well!’.
“Just tell me one thing. Do you dislike the idea of marrying me?”
“That’s… Not the case.”
“Then that’s fine. I told you, didn’t I? Even if you say no, I’ll keep trying until you say yes. If you don’t even dislike it, you’ll eventually give in to my persistence and agree. So just agree now.”
Yumir opened and closed her mouth several times, seemingly unable to speak.
Then she soon closed it. Her face gradually flushed red as if she was seriously imagining married life with me.
Finally.
Nod. She gave a sign of agreement.
TL NOTE:
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So it was Yumir. She made the most sense.