After Euphy kissed me, she returned to her seat and continued her report.
「 Now, as for the future of the Adiciltons, we will reconsider this after we meet with Marquis de Blaureite 」
「 It’s not settled yet? 」
「 No, that’s not the case. I don’t know how far we’re allowed to go without talking to Marquis de Blaureite. Currently, they’re protecting us as we have lost our country, but it’s unclear how they’ll react if we move to acquire territory. The Marquis wouldn’t have expected me to visit this place 」
She was a prisoner of war so it’s unexpected for her to be sold out of slavery.
Usually, it’s either she’s a reward for nobles who achieved success in war, or she’s executed.
Well, considering how cute Euphy is, it would’ve been a waste to execute her, but the Adicilton house is so scary that they don’t want to take her, which ended in me buying her.
「 We’ve been talking about recovering for a long time, but can we do that in this country? 」
「 Given the relationship between Nyhied and Loureshou, it’s expected that it will not be easy. Since both countries have royalty intermarried with each other, I would think they would avoid anything that creates friction. And so, first of all, I believe that Daiki-sama should acquire the territory as originally planned. 」
Oh, we did talk about that.
Honestly, I don’t know what to say about this because I don’t have the sense for it
For example, if you’re buying a house, you can get a vague sense of what you want, but when it comes to gaining a territory, the sale becomes so large that it’s hard to understand.
I mean, being a lord should come with a ton of responsibility too
Not only that, but you also have to pioneer and build the whole thing from scratch.
I can’t consider that because of my ordinary mindset.
「 About that. It would be nice to have me as the representative and leave it to the Adiciltons to hold the real power. I’ll just leave it to them. Still, why do you look like you have a problem with it? 」
Euphy’s expression was a little bit dark.
Something definitely happened.
「 Uhm, the truth is, there was some resistance 」
「 Princess, can I take over? 」
Euphy hesitates to speak, so Gilbert-san takes over.
「 As for the revival, people have been divided for some time now. The idea was to restore the Adicilton house with the princess as the head of the family, but there was a time when there were disagreements about the restoration itself. However, since the princess has returned to us, we have come to the conclusion that she should be the head of the family. Princess was furious and repeatedly tried to convince everyone that they should work for Kotori-dono, but they weren’t convinced 」
「 Well, that’s obvious. Their princess is telling them that a guy whose origins are unknown and who appeared all of a sudden is now standing above her. The loyal knights would quit 」
「 Hmm. It seems that Kotori-dono understands 」
Well yeah.
They’re people who are willing to kill their enemies that killed their master after all.
If it’s not their intense loyalty, I don’t know what is.
「 It is as Princess thinks, it’s realistic to secure the territory with Kotori-dono as the head of the family, and then the Princess’ son will reestablish the Adicilton. If the Princess were to gain territory under her banner, it’ll become a major trigger even without the side effects of Nyhied. Loureshou won’t also look good with it 」
So that’s the disagreement of Adicilton.
I’m sure Gilbert-san agrees with it as he’s going this far, but I can’t help but wonder…
「 Uhm, I just had to ask, but are you fine with me, Gilbert-san? 」
「 Princess says she doesn’t want anyone but Kotori-dono. I didn’t approve of you at first, but the more I get to know you, the more I think that there’s no better suited for the job than you. I’m taking this approach because I’m not yet in that position, but when the time comes, I hope you allow me to pledge my allegiance. 」
I see. I’m recognized enough to be a bit impressed
「 Is that so? Then, Gilbert-san should remain as Euphy’s knight. I’m just here as a decoration, there’s no need for that 」
「 Pfft, I think that part is fitting 」
Oh, the way Gilbert-san’s looking at me is starting to resemble the way he looks at Euphy.
I don’t feel bad, but I get itchy from that gaze. Thinking about it, I suddenly remembered about “status” when Gilbert-san mentioned it.
「 Oh, it’s a separate topic but, I actually got something from Nyhied 」
I said, Then I took out a wooden box from my magic bag, opened it, then placed it on the desk so everyone could see what was inside
At first, everyone looked like they didn’t know what it was, but then Euphy and Gilbert-san’s eyes widened at the same time.
「 D-Daiki-sama? T-This is Nyhied Kingdom’s… 」
「 F-Furthermore, it’s the black gem, the Roodbook’s house’s proof 」
Ooh?
They look quite surprised.
However, it wasn’t a good surprise.
As I was reflecting on whether I should explain before showing this to them, Nia who had been quietly listening looked at me with a face with a floating question mark as if she was wondering why the two were acting strangely.
「 Daiki-nii, what’s this ring? 」
「 You see, it’s a ring that proves that you’re a noble in the Nyhied kingdom 」
Nia’s ears perked up when I told her.
「 Eh? You have it, does it mean that Daiki-nii’s a noble? 」
「 Yeah, things happened. I’ve been given the title of Baronet. Furthermore, I got a territory. I’ll take you there next time. It’s going to be a little difficult since it’ll be dangerous 」
「 I see… Hmm, then, should I start calling you Daiki-sama now? 」
「 No need. Let’s keep it the same way as before 」
「 Okay. I’ll call you Daiki-nii
I was holding and flicking Nia’s ears with both hands and she showed a pure reaction, then Euphy looked at me anxiously, as if she didn’t know what to do
「 Sorry, I wasn’t planning to make it a surprise. I just had to get this for a few reasons, and don’t worry, I have no intention of affiliating myself in Nyhied 」
「 Daiki-sama, can you explain this? 」
I need to explain it properly, so I tried to start from scratch, and not only Euphy but also Gilbert-san’s expression returned to normal
「 And so, to take in the Hero, I received this only as formality Of course, I told the prime minister that if he starts getting absurd, I’ll toss this ring immediately. If that happens, I’m not coming back to that country. But, well, it’s a useful thing to have, depending on how to use it, you can build a relationship with the prime minister, right? And it’s something we might be able to work on as we build the Adicilton house 」
Honestly, I accepted the title because of my interest in this quasi-baron thing, but I hid it and tried my best to explain my reasons why I thought about it, and before I knew it, Euphy’s looking at me with sparkling eyes.
「 Sasuga Daiki-sama. That’s how far you’ve thought ahead. It was an impossible idea for us, who had some negative thoughts towards that country. It’s the orthodox method of the Adicilton house, to use whatever is available
Ugh.
She just took it in, and now I’m feeling guilty.
Even so, it’s true that the Adicilton house thinks that way, so I’ll stay quiet.
I was convincing myself that way, then Gilbert-san looked up from the ring and spoke up.
「 Even so, to think that you gained a connection with the Roodbook house… 」
「 How can you tell? I didn’t say anything yet 」
「 If it’s the black diamond of the Roodbook house with the crest of Nyhied kingdom, then even commoners can tell that it’s Roodbook 」
Gilbert-san looked dumbfounded.
Well, how much information about me are we talking about?
If I recall, I said most of it.
I might as well let them know soon.
I mean, this is a diamond?
I thought it was something else because there was no sparkle.
「 I was born far away, so I don’t know much. I gained a connection with the prime minister over there due to things. I knew that he was a powerful noble house, but was he that famous? 」
「 Roodbooks are the second most powerful noble house in the Nyhied Kingdom only after the Royal family since Janskir Roodbook became the head. When Janskir visits the neighboring countries, he’s welcomed by their Kings. The title “baronet,” that Kotori-dono obtained isn’t recognized as nobility in most cases, but it’s a different story when it comes under the patronage of the Roodbook house. Even the Loureshou’s royal family would treat you as an entity they can’t ignore. I have mixed emotions about this, but there’s no loss in having it 」
Gilbert-san seems to have some complicated emotions, but he’s not negative about the value of a peerage.
He looked at the ring again with a complicated expression.
「 Kotori-dono, if possible, I want to keep this from everyone. We know Kotori-dono, and so we’re convinced that it shouldn’t be a problem, but what will the others think? 」
「 Okay. Let’s keep it a secret within us. I don’t even know how to use this. So, I know this is off-topic, but can I leave the Adicilton knights to you? 」
We got sidetracked because I put out the ring, so I tried to get back to the conversation about dealing with the knights, Then Gilbert-san asks Euphy.
「 Princess, I believe we can ask Kotori-dono about it 」
「 Gilbert, that’s… 」
What? Euphy’s looking at me as if she’s sorry.
「 You need me to do something? 」
「 Hmm, as far as convincing people, it’s not like there aren’t easy ways to do it 」
「 And that way is? 」
「 What? All we had to do was show Kotori-dono’s bravery The Adicilton knights do recognize the strong. So having a match with them will have them accept Kotori-dono 」
「 In short, I just have to beat them up to make them understand 」
As expected of the muscle brain Adicilton knights.
That’s the spirit of “if you’re stronger, I’ll follow you”
Hmm, it’s not like I want to be accepted, but I’m going to be spending time with them so it’s harder to do that if we have that lurking in the background.
If that’s the quickest way to do it, let’s give it a shot.