Chapter 20

At the destination, the territorial people were gathered in small groups, sharing food. It seemed to be some kind of harvest celebration festival. A few of the locals recognized Lady Lunarien who had come to this place, and bowed deeply to greet her. “Isn’t that Lady Lunarien?” At the leading man’s voice, the lively atmosphere quickly turned solemn. Though it wasn’t exactly tense, there was a slight nervousness due to the unexpected appearance of a high-ranking person. Still, no signs of rejection could be seen. If anything, Lady Lunarien was being welcomed warmly by the territorial people.

“Lady Lunarien, please come in.”

“Lord Monarch!”

“If you’re not busy, please try some of this!”

In an instant, the locals gathered around us. Lady Lunarien skillfully raised her hand and nodded her head. “Everyone, please continue as you were.”

‘…Even though I told them not to use honorifics with subordinates, old habits die hard, huh?’ If this world had a political system similar to the one I came from, where common voters existed, treating them like this would be natural—but without such a system, as someone in power, showing dignity might be better. I considered giving another subtle hint…

‘But… maybe having this kind of leadership style isn’t bad for this era.’ This wasn’t in front of her servile vassals but the territorial people. From the perspective of public sentiment, her approach might actually be better. Of course, what made her remarkable was that her actions weren’t calculated like mine—each move didn’t feel so meticulously planned.

“Thanks to Lady Lunarien, peace has returned to our Jeilrant Castle. No other lords have ever cared about this place… We are truly grateful for your efforts.”

A middle-aged woman half-sobbed while nodding repeatedly. Lady Lunarien approached her, took her hands in both of hers, and said, “It’s not because of me. It’s because all of you never gave up and kept striving. Please remember that.”

“Lady Lunarien…”

“Lady Lunarien! Please unify this continent embroiled in war!”

“How can we leave our country to a tyrant like Serpina?! Isn’t that right, everyone?”

That’s right! That’s right!

Here and there, testimonies about Lady Lunarien were popping up left and right. Indeed, she had used six thousand gold coins to help the locals and frequently patrolled the territory. She had clearly captured the hearts of the people. When conscription came around, quite a number of soldiers volunteered willingly. Excluding mercenaries, our troop count boasted ten thousand soldiers. Had Jeilrant Castle been larger, we could’ve recruited even more.

After finishing her conversation with the locals, Lady Lunarien wrapped up the festival and approached me.

“Sir Swoen.”

“What is it?”

“Um…”

Lady Lunarien pointed somewhere with her finger. There, a large bonfire was lit, and several couples were dancing around it. A few bards played lutes, creating a scene reminiscent of a game loading screen set in medieval times.

“Peaceful, isn’t it? All thanks to you, Lord.”

“No, that’s not—”

“?”

I looked at Lady Lunarien’s face.

She hesitated, her cheeks slightly flushed, before sighing softly as if making a resolution.

“…No, it’s nothing.”

What?

Why did she stop talking?

What was she trying to say?

‘…Could it be?’

Something dawned on me, so I asked her, “Do you want to dance?”

“Eh? Ah, yes, well, that is…”

Her inability to answer definitively confirmed my suspicion. So, roughly speaking, she wanted to join in the festivities but felt hesitant because I often emphasized the importance of maintaining royal dignity for a unifying monarch, right? Dancing with the locals at their festival might win their favor but wouldn’t align with the image of a dignified ruler.

But does it really matter?

We’re still a minor kingdom, so there’s no need to worry about such things just yet. Flexibility is key when dealing with different situations.

“It’s fine. Let’s go.”

“Huh?”

“You can forget what I said earlier. Enjoy yourself among the territorial people as much as you wish.”

Lady Lunarien cherished the people greatly. In games like these, I assumed only someone like Karelia would embody this concept—caring for the territorial people and loving peace—but that wasn’t always the case here. So, it’d be best to let her mingle freely.

However…

After hearing me say that, I thought she’d immediately step forward—but she didn’t. Instead, she hesitantly spoke again.

“That, um…”

“?”

“S-Sir Swoen, if you don’t mind… would you care to join me in dancing?”

Upon hearing her words, I remained silent, causing her face to turn red as she desperately tried to explain herself.

“Well, you see! Everyone is pairing up, and going alone feels awkward, and since I’m the ruler… it might burden the territorial people further, so…”

“Do you want me to dance with you?”

“A-Ah…”

Finally lowering her head, she said softly, her face now redder than before, almost resembling a red bean.

“…Yes…”

“…”

This game has more events than I thought. If this counts as an event, then despite certain circumstances…

Over the past few months living here, I’ve grown attached to the members of the Lunarien Army and developed some pride in this territory—but I’ve been cautious. After all, I have a place to return to, and in a world like this, getting emotionally involved could lead to irrational decisions.

But still…

I’m confident that Lunarien Iniyan will become the unifying ruler. Since I must stay by her side to return to my original world…

Wouldn’t this extent be alright?

“Let’s go.”

“Eh?!”

“I’ll oblige as you wish.”

I took her hand. Surprisingly, she didn’t pull away. Instead, she gripped my hand lightly and said tremulously,

“Yes, yes! Thank you very much!”

Thus, we danced lightly in front of the bonfire. The reflection of the flames illuminated her pale skin. Her light cream-colored hair swayed gently with each movement. Her ruby eyes gazing at me became vividly etched into my mind.

* * *

This is Anel Castle’s royal palace. Lin Brance sat on the throne, receiving reports from envoys.

“We’ve returned, Lady Lin. We successfully negotiated a three-week ceasefire agreement with the Aishias Army.”

“Great job. What about the south?”

Another envoy beside the first one replied,

“We also successfully established a ceasefire agreement with the Roland Army, which shares our border, but the duration could only be adjusted to one month.”

“One month? Wasn’t it supposed to be three?”

At Lin’s question, the envoy bowed apologetically.

“My apologies, Lord Roland insisted that three months was too long, so we had to settle for one month.”

‘The Roland guys are always trying something whenever they see an opening. I didn’t want to deal with the south for a while, but well, one month should be enough.’

Thinking this, Lin smiled and said,

“It’s fine. Even one month works for me. I initially said I’d accept one month if we could secure a ceasefire agreement, right?”

“But, still…”

“That’s enough. The discussion is over. Both of you worked hard! Take a good rest. Starting next week, unless I call you, you can help out in the market. Got it?”

“Yes! Understood!”

After the envoys left,

a soldier standing nearby spoke up.

“My lord, General Chel’s army has just arrived.”

Hearing this, Lin’s expression brightened.

“Ah, really? As expected from Big Brother♡ He arrived super fast!”

“Shall I let them in?”

“Yes, right away.”

“Understood!”

Not long after,

a tall man with short blue hair walked in wearing plate armor. His imposing figure, sunken eyes, and scars all over his face radiated strength. Despite the scars, he was undeniably handsome.

Following him was a beautiful woman with short purple hair and violet eyes, exuding an enchanting aura.

They knelt before Lin and spoke.

The man introduced himself as Chel Brance, known as the foremost swordsman of the Brance Army.

“Chel Brance, following your orders, I’ve just arrived from Santica Castle in the south.”

The woman introduced herself as Parphale, the strategist of the Brance Army. Renowned as the ‘most intelligent woman in the central region’ since childhood, she caught Lin Brance’s eye early on. She had temporarily left her post to assist Chel Brance in commanding the southern front against the Serpina Army but had just returned.

“Parphale, following your command, I’ve just arrived from Santica Castle in the south.”

“Good, good! Welcome back, both of you!”

Lin greeted them with open arms.

Chel questioned curiously,

“Why have you summoned us to Anel Castle? As far as I know, the northern front has quieted down.”

“That’s true. I don’t plan to send Big Brother north anymore. Little Brother is already guarding it.”

After successfully repelling a force of 55,000 elite troops,

the Serpina Army continued to invade with forces of 20,000 to 30,000 soldiers. Although they suffered significant losses, they managed to defend Kelshtain Castle three times in succession, suppressing the Serpina Army’s ambition to expand into the central region. Whether they retreated temporarily or abandoned the effort entirely remains unclear, but currently, the Serpina Army hasn’t launched any further invasions.

Given this situation, excluding the troops defending the north, they needed to quickly gather forces, necessitating stabilizing the remaining fronts. These two ceasefire agreements were precisely for that purpose.

“And I heard you made a ceasefire agreement with the Roland Army… Is that correct?”

“Yeah, so you don’t need to worry about the southern front for now.”

“Ye-ess…”

Chel asked with evident confusion, unsure what Lin was planning. They had secured agreements with both the eastern Aishias Army and the southern Roland Army. There was no intention to send troops north. To the west, only a cluster of insignificant minor nations remained. Yet, he had summoned the large army stationed in the south here to Anel Castle.

As if sensing Chel’s thoughts, Lin nodded and explained,

“You’re right, Big Brother. We don’t need you for the west. But… what we’re about to take isn’t just some small piece of land from those minor countries. Rather…”

At Chel’s question, Lin’s azure eyes sparkled momentarily. He knew that look well—it was his sister’s ‘talent hunt’ mode.

“We’re about to acquire the pieces necessary to rule the world!”