The Marquis’ Eldest Son’s Lascivious Story

As Wilk thought, holding a small tea party was beneficial for Romilie.

From Romilie's perspective, her friendship with Plume, the next head of the Sylopea family, was of course important. However, what was even more important was that she had been able to get to know Fanny Quordenze personally.

Fanny is an important person, being the eldest daughter of the current head of the family, Luxus. But until now, very little information about her has been leaked to other ter ritories. This is because she has never appeared in social gatherings. The only things known to the public are her gender, age, name, hair and eye color. This is not much di fferent from the information held by the Spierzeig family's intelligence unit.

It was a great experience to be able to see Fanny's behavior in both a formal setting such as a welcome party and a casual setting such as a tea party.

[...This is the first time I've had this tea, and it smells really nice.]

Putting a break in the conversation, Romilie puts her lips to the teacup.

She had been observing Fanny with special care since this small tea party started, but so far there was nothing that caught her attention. That could be said to be expected, but in some ways it was also unexpected.

From Romilie's point of view, Wilk Quordenze is a mysterious person whose principles of behavior and thought process cannot be read. Then, a question arises here. If the older brother is like that, what about the younger sister? If there is a common idiosyncrasy between the two siblings, it could also be considered to be an idiosyncrasy inten tionally created by the Quordenze family's upbringing.

When considering the future direction of the Spierzeig family, she wanted to know about this as early as possible.

However, Romilie also believed that it is premature to draw conclusions at this stage.

After all, Wilk doesn't always act inexplicably, and he usually behaves perfectly as one expects a young noble would. If only during this small tea party, it's quite possible th at Fanny was just putting on a good front and acting like a good girl.

And at the moment, Romilie was evaluating Fanny as "a tactful noble daughter". If she started acting incomprehensible the next moment, she would have completely assum ed that Fanny was a female version of Wilk.

[A souvenir from Wilk?]

Wilk smiled at Plume, who seemed to wonder if he bought it in some city in the Quordenze territory.

[These are tea leaves that I bought in Nambonan City. I've given them as souvenirs before, so I prepared the same one this time as well. How do you like it? Did you like it?]

Rather than a question, it was more like a confirmation that "this is Plume's favorite scent, right?".

[Yes, I think the scent of flowers is very nice.]

They call each other by nicknames and know each other's favorite foods. The exchange was quite natural, and the fact that there was no intention to appeal made the appe al even stronger.

Romilie was about to ponder the future relationship between the Quordenze family and the Sylopea family, but now she reconsidered if she should prioritize the conversati on over that. Since the topic of Nambonan City came up, there was something she wanted to confirm.

[I have never seen a city so crowded.]

There, Romilie talked about the state of Nambonan City as seen from the carriage.

[I understand what Princess Romilie is saying very well. That kind of vibrancy was not even present in the Royal Capital Levios.]

Plume agreed with that opinion, and they freely shared their thoughts.

In terms of the size of the city, it is certainly not comparable to Newnelly City or the Royal Capital Levios. However, the two felt that the strong and intense energy radiated by the citizens was unlike any other city. Regardless of whether it's good or bad.

It seems like a wonderful thing for the people of the territory to be lively and energetic when you think about it from Earth's common sense, but in the Eruo continent, which is in a feudal era, it is not necessarily a good thing.

In fact, to varying degrees, there are many Quordenze officials who view the temperament of Nambonan citizens in a negative light. From the perspective of stable territory management, it is easier to use people who are obedient and listen well. Of course, there are some people who like that vigor.

[One of the civil servants described the Nambonan citizens as being like summer weeds.]

Wilk, laughing as he said that, was a person who could be categorized as someone who liked it.

[Well, it's a little too lively, but I think it's interesting. Every time I visit, something changes, so I never get bored.]

She didn't find anything condescending in the way he speaks. Romilie decided that there is no lie in these words.

The Spierzeig family knew Nambonan City well. This is because they had a cooperative relationship against Quordenze until it was annexed last year. Of course, there was a strong sense that the nobles were taking advantage of the group of commoners, so they could not be called equals.

In any case, it is true that there was a connection behind the scenes. During this time, she was able to learn more about the structure of self-government through the counc il and the high level of awareness of citizens towards independence. Perhaps because of such prior knowledge, the Spierzeig family's intelligence unit grasped the fact that the council was functioning effectively even after the annexation of Quordenze territory.

In the current Nambonan City, the policies issued by the council are basically enforced as they are, although there are checks by Quordenze civil officers. It is a fairly unco nventional system in which the will of the people of the territory is reflected in city government, albeit indirectly.

Regarding this, the Spierzeig family concluded that Mylord Galiana, a commoner-born noble, was behind the scenes. Wilk's speech when he was inaugurated as mayor wa s based on that person's advice, and the position of mayor was probably just a title.

[You seem to be favoring Nambonan City.]

However, after coming into contact with Wilk, Romilie felt that this perception was partly wrong. There is no doubt that Mylord was working behind the scenes, but she felt t hat Wilk himself had a lot of influence over the way Nambonan city government should be run.

[This is the first city I've been given the responsibility to govern, so I can't help it.]

The flow of the story is not bad. Romilie made that decision and decided to move on.

[I think it is natural for us to think of ourselves as masters and to do our best to govern.... Come to think of it, Wilk-dono also talked about the responsibilities of guardians at the signing of the agreement. There were some parts that were...]

[Is there a part that makes you concerned?]

[Yes. About...]

At that, Romilie let out a small voice and looked at Fanny.

Of all the people here, Fanny is the only one who did not participate in the Nambonan City signing ceremony. Whether or not Fanny knows the details of the Nambonan Pea ce Treaty is unknown to Romilie. Therefore, as a courtesy, she showed consideration by saying, "It may be rude to continue talking about topics that could leave the host of the small tea party alone. Shall we stop?".

[Please don't worry about me and continue talking.]

The fact that she can give that permission means that she already knows about the Nambonan Peace Treaty. Romilie looked at Wilk while thinking about Fanny's position in the Quordenze family.

[Well then, it's about the part...]

We, the guardians, are fighting against an unspeakable and unprecedented disaster, and even though we are driven by kindness, we consider the cause of being the maste r of the people, public order and reason, and save our people from the sorrows of endless wars caused by bloody grudges. We hereby embody the spirit of protecting the earth and conclude a pact for peace, in order to bring peace and prosperity to the territory for a long time to come, so that the children and grandchildren of the Trinity and One Spirit can enjoy life in a pure world.

It’s a passage she had read over and over again. Romilie recited the preamble to the Nambonan Peace Treaty without hesitation.

[What do you mean by “the children and grandchildren of the Trinity and One Soul can enjoy life in a pure world"?]

Wilk thought that would be the most noticeable part when thinking from a noble's perspective. She is aware that it would be a little strange for a high-spirited nobleman wh o would defeat Spierzeig's army head-on to use such a philanthropic expression. However, Romilie shook her head slightly.

[Yes, that was something I was concerned about as well. Regarding the Trinity and One Spirit, Wilk-dono...]

Romilie deftly postponed the main topic and asked a number of questions to see Wilk's reaction. She was trying to find out even the slightest bit of Wilk's personality and te mperament. Then, words come flying at her from an unexpected direction.

[Isn’t it a cause to be the master of the people?]

Romilie, who was concentrating on observing Wilk, was caught off guard. And without missing that moment of carelessness, Plume continued.

[Ah, is that correct? Ufufu. I also have some thoughts about that expression, and I'd like to talk about it somewhere someday. What do you think, Princess Romilie?]

Since the point was correct, Romilie had no choice but to affirm it. A girl who is innocently happy after answering a quiz correctly... Plume has no qualms in creating and dir ecting such a joyful atmosphere. If you say something stupid, your reputation will only go down.

[Yes, that's the part. I wonder what this cause really means...]

Romilie's heart was a little upset that her thunder was stolen, but she didn't reveal it to those around her and acted as if it were as planned.

[Isn’t that because we are the Highlords, that we become the master of people?]

Plume's line is an antonym to help the conversation flow smoothly.

[Yes. That's what I thought too.]

A Highlord has great influence because they are naturally strong. This can be said to be a value that is vaguely and deeply rooted among the people of the Eruo continent.

[We must avoid needlessly losing the lives of Highlords. We must now realize that we are the masters of the people without being bound by the past. That is how we should interpret it.]

Romilie said that it's clear that the "righteous cause to rule the people" refers to the existence of a strong person called an Highlord, based on the fact that the number of Hi ghlords was reduced by the disaster of Yersinia, and that the story preaches the sorrow of war before and after. Plume and Fanny also agreed with this interpretation.

Wilk was the only one who was shouting "No!" in his head.

[I think Princess Romilie is right. There was not a single one of Sylopea's subjects who worried about the meaning of the cause.]

[Spierzeig too.]

Wilk remained silent, but so was Quordenze.

It is so obvious that even when the preamble was drafted, the wording was not given much attention and the green light was given as is. If anything, Wilk was focusing on making adjustments because there were a lot of tsukkomi about the Trinity and One Soul.

[In spite of this, Princess Romilie is now worrying about the meaning of the cause again?]

[Yes. It was a short period of time, but as I talked with Wilk-dono and worked together with him, I gradually began to think that this interpretation was wrong.]

His political attitude toward Nambonan City, the speech he gave when he went to subjugate the Demonic Beast Calamitis, the words of incitement he gave to the Spierzeig territory militia during Operation Snake's Jaw, the various rumors that were heard from various places, and above all, the fall of Othelloria City. This gave her more opportun ities to have direct conversations. Was it the result of accumulating that information, or maybe it was just a flash of inspiration or a hunch? Romilie still has no idea what lies at the root of Wilk's thought process, but she felt like she found something in the preamble that could be a hint.

She turned her gaze from Plume to Wilk. In order to gain control of the conversation, I decided to speak my words directly.

[I was blessed with the opportunity to speak to you in such a private setting. I know this is embarrassing, but may I ask Wilk-dono about the cause to rule the people and w hat this means?]

Even though he wasn't convinced, Wilk knew that Romilie had a certain hypothesis in her head.

Although he ends up talking about his own thoughts and beliefs, it doesn't necessarily mean that any inconvenience will occur immediately. Instead, being dishonest here may be more troublesome later. Wilk calculated that and decided to answer sincerely.

[Of course, that means fulfilling my responsibility as a Guardian of the Land.]

As expected, Romilie had this thought in mind. But, predicting it and actually understanding it are two different things.

[ does that mean, Wilk-dono believes that being Highlord alone does not make one have the right to rule over people?]

Her tone conveyed the feeling that such a thing would never happen. Wilk could see that Romilie is waiting for a negative word. However, his next response was a word of affirmation.

[Yes. The reason our ancestors are nobles is because we protect our territory and protect our people.]

Romilie was horrified by Wilk, who casually talked about foreign values as if it were a matter of course.

First of all, I don't understand the expression "can be a noble". It is as if the Highlords cannot be made a noble without the support of the commoner serfs. In the continent o f Eruo, the Highlords are born strong, and the strong are said to stand above the weak. The idea that the will of the serfs would influence the position of the Highlords could be said to be incomprehensible.

[A noble is someone who protects the land. I think that is a belief shared by all the nobles living in this land, whether they are Quordenze or Spierzeig...]

[Yes, that's right...]

It is the responsibility of the nobles to protect the land from demonic beasts and bring peace to their territory. However, even if he doesn't fulfill his responsibilities, the Hig hlord is still great enough. The cause that makes them the masters of the people is that we are born in the lineage of our ancestors.

Of course, Wilk understands this Eruo continent way of thinking in his head. However, he cannot say that it blends well with him. Perhaps it was the influence of his previou s life as an ordinary citizen, but there was a part of him that thought that if you were a politician who ruled over a large number of people, you should do everything you cou Id. The idea that you are great just because you were born doesn't come out of your head.

And it can be said that this difference in values was reflected in the preamble to the Nambonan Peace Treaty. However, most people don't notice because they automatical! y come to terms with a completely different interpretation. Only Plume and Fanny, who have had close ties with Wilk since childhood, and Romilie, who is desperately trying to read Wilk's mind as she shoulders the weight of the Spierzeig family's demise, were able to notice the strangeness in the preamble.

[...It is the responsibility of the head of the family to protect the blood, protect the land, and in other words, protect the principles.]

[And that is?]

[This is Spierzeig's family motto.]

Seeing Wilk nod, Romilie was reminded that they were fundamentally different.

[I don't mean that the head of a noble family must protect both their Highlord blood and the land...]

[Oh, is that so?]

[Yes. It is a teaching that teaches that the head of the family must act rationally, placing first priority on protecting the blood and the home. We must not forget this principl e: Only by protecting the blood can we protect the land. It's not wrong to interpret it that way.]

The first thing to consider is to connect the lineage of the Highlord, and the idea is that protecting the land will follow after that.

In reality, if the Highlord died, there would be no need to protect the land, so the theory is not wrong. It may be a natural consequence that the Highlord is considered great just by existing as the Highlord.

[What do you think, Princess Plume?]

[As for the cause, I am in the same opinion as Princess Romilie. However, as Will said, I also want to act in a manner befitting a nobleman and protector of the earth.]

Romilie was relieved by that answer. It turns out that Plume also recognized that her ancestor, who was born into an aristocratic family, was a nobleman from birth. Althoug h she has shown a certain degree of understanding, she does not think that one can attain the status of a noble by protecting the territory and its people like Wilk.

[...Does that mean that Wilk-dono has a lofty idea of the ideal of a nobleman?]

During times of war, noble families that were unable to govern their lands were sometimes destroyed by other families' ties to them. This is the end-of-the-century theory t hat "weak nobles who are unfit to be guardians of the land should be destroyed by stronger nobles". The main purpose of this is to expand the territory, and the guardian of the land part was merely justification.

Romilie wondered if the "cause to rule over people" advocated by Wilk is an idea that has been taken seriously and radicalized. If you genuinely think, not out of malice, tha t nobles who cannot bring peace to the people of their territory are not nobles and should be destroyed, then that is an extremely dangerous thought.

[Imagining my ideal... To be honest, I don't think it's that grand, but...it's difficult.]

Furthermore, Wilk was just unconsciously seeking a rational that he himself could accept. Rather than a violent hierarchy in which people are allowed to do whatever they want because they are strong, a causal relationship in which they are allowed to dominate the weak because they are fulfilling their responsibilities as a strong person just makes more sense.

[Wil just cares about the people of his territory, right?]

If you look at the way Plume responds so easily, and the way she trusts her childhood friend, you can tell that Wilk doesn't harbor any insane and dangerous thoughts. However, Romilie felt that she should understand the roots of Wilk's values as early as possible. It would be pointless if she accidentally did something unnecessary and pu tthe Spierzeig family in danger.

[I would like to visit Nambonan City, which Wilk-dono cherishes, someday.]

Nambonan City is the city where Wilk's first campaign took place, and it is also a city where he is deeply involved in its government. In addition, in Operation Serpent's Fan g, they rushed to the defense with unusual speed, and in Operation Snake's Jaw, Nambonan soldiers played a major role. When Romilie arrived in Nambonan for the signin g ceremony, she received an unusually warm welcome from the citizens. Although it is an unconfirmed rumor, it is said that Wilk began to care for the citizens of Nambona n as a result of being taught various things by the women of the city.

She thought that Nambonan City might have some hints to understand Wilk's values and beliefs.

[I don't mind if you show me around after you return to Othelloria.]

The Nambonan Peace Treaty stipulates that Romilie will be kept in Quordenze territory. Currently, it is in the custody of the City of Newnelly, but if Romilie wishes to move t o another city, Quordenze has an obligation to respect that request. This article was intended to have Othelloria City transferred to the Quordenze territory as soon as possi ble, but if this was used, it would also be possible for Romilie to move to another city within the Quordenze territory.

However, she can't say that she wants to move to Nambonan City right away. Since Othelloria City is still under the control of the Spierzeig family, any attempt to leave Ne wnelly City will be suspected of fleeing or rebelling. She needed to avoid all that.

[Of course. I will let you know at that time.]

[Thank you.]

Romilie thanked him with a smile, and then decided to confirm one more thing.

[If we were to move from Othelloria to Nambonan, would we have to use the old Amelia public road?]

You will be able to move between cities only after Othelloria City is handed over to the Quordenze family, the territory management is on track to some extent, and a facility for the nobles to stay is being constructed in Nambonan City. That will be a matter of years in the future.

If the Quordenze family were to make full use of purification magic to develop the Arknoa Contaminated Area, they could also choose a route that would take them to Namb onan City via Arknoa instead of via Reisleaf.

Romilie wanted to find out about the Quordenze family's policy on using purification magic, but Wilk gave an ambiguous smile.

[I think whether the old Amelia public road is usable will depend on the time of year.]

To Romilie's ears, that sounded like "Please hand over Othelloria City quickly". In reality, it meant that Wilk didn't know how long it would take to share the purification magi c, but he didn't feel the need to divulge it that thoroughly.

Romilie gave Wilk an ambiguous smile and placed her lips into the empty teacup.

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