The Extra Strategist’s Royal Road Chapter 133
Returning to the academy after nearly a month.
Although it was mid-winter and the curriculum was almost over, the academy students had to attend classes without exception due to Fensillon Academy admissions and pre-education.
I was no exception, so I headed to the academy classroom accompanied by noisy escorts.
“Wow, he’s here!”
“The one beside him is…”
Now that I didn’t need to hide my face anymore, Eo was sticking close to me.
Eo was glaring and unnecessarily guarding the surroundings. She looked ready to thrust her spear at anyone who might approach.
“Eo, stop making a fuss and sit down.”
“Yes sir.”
Then, exclamations of ‘Whoa!’ echoed throughout.
“It’s really Eonia Mirabel!”
“I-I can’t believe it! To handle Eonia Mirabel like that! Is he really Wade!?”
Although Casper had once brought a fake Eonia before, this time it’s the real deal. The impact is bound to be different.
Above all, Eo not only has outstanding beauty but also an unparalleled dignity.
All the cadets were staring at Eo as if mesmerized.
Soon, Dorofei cautiously approaches.
“Um… Ars…?”
“Oh, come on. There’s no need to be so wary. Nothing about me has changed from before.”
That’s how it is.
To others, it seems as if Wade had been wearing Ars as a mask.
In reality, it was Ars wearing Wade as a mask.
I didn’t care what others thought, but I wanted to maintain my relationship with Dorofei at least.
“Phew! Right? Suddenly all this talk about Wade and whatnot… But still, I see. So it really was you who was Wade…”
“What do you mean by really? Did you suspect it?”
“Vaguely. Wade first appeared at the Battle of Foldic Mountain, right? At that time, General Ironheart was a vassal of our family. I happened to overhear a bit when he came to report to my father after that war.”
“What did he say?”
“That Wade’s true identity was a cadet. So at first, I thought for sure that Casper was Wade.”
“Ah…”
So that’s why Dorofei believed Casper was Wade.
“But no matter how I looked at him, he didn’t seem like someone capable of that. So I was unsure. In that situation, when I learned about your skills, Ars, I started to think that maybe I had been mistaken.”
Mockery towards Casper was pouring out from here and there.
Saying he was putting on airs in front of a real hero, that he was a ridiculous clown. It’s hard to believe that until just a few months ago, these guys were treating Casper like a king.
“… Dorofei, would you come to Rainpol later? I’ll introduce you to my vassals.”
“D-Does that mean…?”
“It means exactly what you’re thinking. So if you’re coming, it’s better to come fully prepared.”
Dorofei swallowed hard.
“Is Aggert there too, by any chance?”
“Yes, he ended up under me. He’s still at a stage where it’s awkward to call him a vassal, though.”
“…I understand. I’ll definitely come.”
Good. With this, Dorofei’s recruitment is also successful.
Dorofei was a domestic talent who could achieve maximum efficiency in agriculture and military administration. He could also handle other tasks above average, so he could be called an all-rounder domestic talent.
I intended to accelerate talent recruitment on this occasion.
To prepare for the increasingly rapid progression of the story.
I expected people’s views of me to change significantly once Wade’s identity was revealed, but it was more serious than I anticipated.
Even royalty, not to mention the great nobles, came to visit the academy to see me.
Many people also came to see Eo.
I was fully exposed to those gazes while out in the academy garden.
“Oh dear. At this rate, we won’t be able to have a proper conversation.”
I was considering rescheduling, but Erina showed up 30 minutes early for our appointment.
She approached the garden table where I was sitting, accompanied by her head servant Joan.
“Lord Ars. I’m glad we could meet safely again. I heard you performed well in this recent war too.”
“Well, I became famous for other reasons. Anyway, please sit down. Would you like to sit too, Joan?”
Joan’s expression was, how should I put it… She still seemed not to believe it.
“To think that Lord Elaine was Wade… I thought you had extraordinary qualities, but…”
“Haha, I don’t understand why everyone looks at me like I’m someone else.”
I’m still me, after all.
To this, Erina says that’s only natural.
“Because you’re Wade! Wade of the Twenty Heroes, who could even enter the ranks of the Ten Heroes! No, should I call you Ars of the Ten Heroes now?”
“Oh my. Ten Heroes? There’s a limit to how grandiose you can be.”
“Grandiose? If anything, it’s not enough!”
Erina begins to emphasize the influence that the name Wade carries.
It makes me feel awkward, as if she’s a fan boasting about a celebrity.
She seems to feel the same way, as she clears her throat awkwardly and changes the subject.
“But Lord Ars. Is it alright for you to talk so casually with me like this? The gazes around us…”
“It’s fine. I can take full responsibility now.”
“…!”
Erina takes a sharp breath. Her face gradually turns red.
“Re-responsibility, you say…!?”
“In many ways.”
For one, I no longer need to be mindful of factions.
After all, I’ve gained the full support of King Gareth.
Following recent events, I told King Gareth about the plan to divide the world in two. I had a hunch about why King Gareth gave me independent operational authority and why he protected me despite knowing my connection to Crossing.
When I mentioned that I would start from Crossing’s southern territory and conquer Bülang’s territory, King Gareth liked the plan.
He immediately summoned Duke Hellian and instructed him to work with Crossing towards continental unification.
Duke Hellian, of course, was taken aback.
— What are you saying! If we do that, our kingdom will…!
— I’ll disappear as the first and last king. It’s not like we have a long history. I founded Calliper just to try and govern the chaotic situation as best I could. Now that the chance for unification has come, is there any reason to hesitate?
A king ordering the destruction of his own kingdom. It must have been hard for Duke Hellian to accept.
Still, he was the type to listen to reason.
Eventually, he understood the king’s grand vision and decided to support me.
Now, if I wanted to, I could overthrow the Kingdom of Calliper and become king.
Of course, I won’t do that.
I intended to abolish several irrational systems, including the nobility system. Staging a rebellion and becoming the new king of Calliper would mean inheriting all those irrational systems as well.
If I tried to forcibly remove them, I’d face strong opposition. The most prominent would be the rebellion of the nobles.
So it was better to create a kingdom in the south as planned, conquer Bülang to build up power, and then merge with Calliper. This way, there would be less discord.
“So from now on, we can meet without worrying about appearances.”
“I see.”
Erina smiled as if expectant, yet also somewhat burdened.
“So this is what you urgently wanted to talk about today.”
“No? I have a separate matter to discuss. This was just something I wanted to convey.”
“If you have a matter to discuss…”
I hesitated a bit about this part too. But since it was already decided, I resolved to speak boldly.
“I’m getting married.”
“…Pardon?”
“I said I’m getting married. It was decided a few days ago. The wedding ceremony will be much later, but we’re officially getting married for now.”
Eo shows the same reaction to this.
“Oh, Lord Ars! What do you mean by marriage…?”
“Come to think of it, I didn’t tell you either.”
Erina leans forward and asks, “Who is it? Is it Estelle!?”
“No, it’s not Estelle. It’s Yumir, my servant.”
“You mean that beastkin girl?”
“That’s right. You’ve seen her a few times too, right?”
“But why…”
“There were various circumstances, but above all, we like each other. Whatever the circumstances, that’s enough, isn’t it?”
Erina seemed to have received quite a shock.
I thought it couldn’t be helped even if she was disappointed and cut off relations.
“Did, did you tell Estelle too?”
“I told her last night.”
“What did she say?”
“She said she didn’t mind.”
That part was very unexpected for me too.
Estelle accepted it calmly.
— I’m fine with Ms. Yumir. She’s a benefactor to me as well. But anything beyond that is difficult, okay?
— Wh-what if something beyond that does happen?
— I might cry.
Though she said she might cry, Estelle’s eyes were full of determination.
“Estelle…”
Erina makes a complicated expression and speaks with concern.
“I don’t mind that part either. But there’s the issue of my family. If word gets out that not only am I not becoming a second or third wife, but the first wife is a beastkin…”
“You’re already talking as if you’re about to get engaged.”
“Huh? Ah…! N-no, that’s not it! I was just giving an example…!”
“Well, you won’t need to worry about that part before long.”
In the kingdom I will establish, there will be no discrimination against beastkin. And no nobles either.
***
On the way back after finishing work at the academy.
Bored during the carriage ride, I was checking the confidential information about the Kingdom of Calliper that Duke Hellian had handed over.
─The one-armed man’s corpse found in the Kingdom of Bülang was not Casper Millias.
─There seems to be another reason for the Kingdom of Europe’s invasion of Tunkai.
─There are active behind-the-scenes machinations in Balas. It appears that about 60 spies from all kingdoms combined have been eliminated this year alone. There is a force actively eliminating spies.
─There is a force in Beckavia trying to push for a merger with Crossing. Judging from this, it seems to be a political maneuver by Juras Pamilion.
─Upon reinvestigation of the Fensillon revival forces under His Majesty the King’s orders. While the existence of survivors could not be confirmed, according to the testimony of nearby villagers, a boy and a beastkin carrying a child were wandering around the area around the same time. However, the testimony is too old and has many uncertainties, so its credibility is not high.
These were interesting pieces of information.
First, regarding that Casper fellow.
‘Looks like Juras was one step ahead.’
I’m not sure if Casper is dead or alive, but now that Juras has made his move, perhaps a fate worse than death awaits him.
I decided to stop worrying about him now.
And the last piece of information.
‘So the King sent investigators to find out about my information.’
The beastkin carrying a child was clearly Yumir and me.
One thing that bothered me was the existence of a certain boy.
‘Cassius was three years old at the time, they said.’
He’s definitely not a boy. Not old enough to wander around alone either.
‘Well, they said the testimony was uncertain.’
I wasn’t particularly interested in the other information as it was something that could be known from the Crossing Intelligence Department as well.
I tidied up the documents and put them in my bag.
There was still about 30 minutes left until we arrived at Rainpol, so I thought about reading a book, but it was getting dark and that was difficult too.
I looked at Eo, thinking of chatting, but she spoke to me first.
“…Lord Ars.”
“Hm? What’s wrong? Why such a serious expression?”
“There’s something I want to ask. How… How did the marriage arrangement with Yumir come about?”
“Ah, about that.”
Wanting to chat, I told her everything from Gaspar’s story to my mother’s story.
Eo nodded as if she understood.
“Gaspar… So that’s how it happened. I see.”
She clenches her fist as if she’s made some kind of decision.
“I… I will definitely achieve first place in the Merit award next time.”
“…? Okay. Work hard.”
“Yes, so please wait for me!”
I could see an unusual motivation in her expression.
Thinking that what’s good is good, I encouraged her.
By the time we returned to Rainpol, the sun had completely set and darkness had settled in.
After returning to the office once to check the current situation, I decided to go straight back to the mansion to rest.
After washing up with the bath water Yumir had prepared, I changed clothes and returned to my room.
After waiting for a while after that, since she showed no signs of coming, I decided to barge in myself.
“Yumir, what are you doing?”
“M-Master!?”
Yumir was restless in her own room. I smiled wryly and said, “We agreed to stay in the same room starting today, remember?”
“B-But, that…”
“Why are you so nervous? You always clean my room well.”
“That’s a different story… Besides, if we sleep together, I might disturb your sleep…”
“It’s okay. We got a new big bed too. Brother Max got it for us.”
Yumir seemed unsure how to react. I was also fidgeting, but I had to take the lead here, so I pretended to be calm somehow.
“Come on, hurry up.”
I forcibly led her to my room.
Yumir follows, still tense.
So I sat Yumir on the bed, but… From here on, I became cautious too.
First, I sat down next to her.
I can feel her heartbeat through our touching shoulders.
Thinking that Yumir, who always looks so calm, is this nervous made me mutter to myself not to get nervous too.
A moment of silence flows. Unable to bear the silence, Yumir speaks with a slight tremor.
“Shall I… Lend you my lap?”
She offered to give me a lap pillow as she always did. It was an attractive offer, but I decided to refuse.
“That’s not what we’re here for today. You know that too.”
Yumir’s body trembled.
Then she manages to nod.
“…Yes. Come, Master.”
I kissed her carefully.
Yumir closed her eyes tightly as if surrendering herself. I was itching to use my tongue, but for now, I ended it with just a kiss.
“…Ha, haha. This feels somewhat new.”
My whole body was itching like crazy. But it wasn’t an unpleasant feeling.
It wasn’t just me, as Yumir’s tail was standing straight up like a stick.
I gently stroked that tail to help her relax. As if my feelings were conveyed, Yumir relaxes and places her tail on the back of my right hand.
I could feel both of us relaxing.
I kissed her again. This time it was a deeper kiss than before.
After that, everything flowed smoothly.
As if guided by instinct, everything unfolded naturally.
TL NOTE:
Schedule: Everyday
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Ars finally got something good.