Oukoku e Tsuzuku Michi

Chapter 170

「Soldiers, line up!」

「……Aah . 」

「Salute!」

As I stand on the podium in the royal institution, all the students in front of me stands still at attention and then salutes .

Oh right, I have to tell them to stop .

「You may relax . 」

「At ease!」

This is awfully stiff…… well I guess that's how military schools are .

Now I have to do troublesome greetings and listen to the self-introductions of the students I'll probably forget about later anyways .

The royal institution is broken down into groups of 20 students each . There are times the entire student body will perform an activity together, but most functions are done in their teams of 20 .

「I don't really care though……」

It has only been about five seconds since the introductions began and I'm already losing the motivation to continue .

That's because these 20 people are all wearing hats and pants…… and they're all guys .

Moreover, this team was just established this year and most of them haven't received any education .

Now that I think about it, it's obvious that would be the case since this team is the core class, in other words the kids who are supposed to be raised into military commanders .

I'm sure there won't be too many cultured girls who would willingly strive to become a commander .

Why would they be curious about an environment filled with boys anyways?

Furthermore, the students all crowd around me after their self-introductions and talk about personal topics . Most of them talk about their house or their family .

There aren't very many kids here who are from high class noble families affiliated with the military .

Plenty of those kids can become military commanders even without going through school .

The kids here are mostly the second sons from poorer, lower class noble families or the son of some knight family in a distant countryside or the sons of influential persons in the region .

「Aegir-sama is now one of the leading grand nobles of the kingdom and your status is the highest it can go which doesn't require royal blood . From now on, whenever you go to places where people are aiming to get high in the ranks, they will start promoting themselves and their household quite thoroughly . But please! Don't get lured in my women especially!」

I was told that by Nonna before I left .

That reminds me, Nonna became ecstatic every time I went up in rank or widened my territory, but this time she was tame or rather she didn't look pleased .

Maybe Nonna had her hands full just from thinking about her own child .

「Lord Hardlett! Thank you for always taking care of my father . 」

Who are you, I don't know your father .

「In the event of my graduation, please by all means assign me under Your Excellency's army!」

Tell that to Erich, this training facility is one which raises commanders for the Kingdom's army .

「My brother is in the army . I would like to ask if Your Excellency can greet him in the future……」

Who's that, maybe I'll meet him if you ask me when I'm free .

「My sister would like to meet Hardlett-sama……」

I'll have to ask about more details from you later .

「Ahem! Everyone, return to your seats . 」

The instructor couldn't just watch without doing anything and shouted loudly, ordering the students to head back to their spots reluctantly .

「Now then Margrave Hardlett, please go ahead . 」

I thought this would happen .

The lesson was interrupted for my sake so I can't just say "Do your best and work hard" and be done with it .

It can't be helped, I'll say something I've heard over and over from Leopolt and Myla .

「Gentlemen, I'm sure there are quite a few of you who may have the frame of mind of a knight or noble learned from when you were young . 」

Those students who appear to be the sons of knights and nobles stick their chests out with pride, while those of common birth get slightly more timid .

「However, that kind of thing might hinder you in a military organization . In fact, you can say it'll get in the way . 」

The people in the room start making a commotion .

They probably can't stay silent after being told their pride as a noble will become an obstacle .

One young man…… who looks to be about 16, raised his hand to object .

「Hey, the Margrave is still in the middle of his-……」

「It's fine . Let him speak . 」

「I am ………… the third son of the Baron Vidra's household! I cannot agree with what you just said! Pride as a noble and etiquette should be important because of the fact we'll be a part of the honorable Kingdom's army, fighting like some brigand is unforgivable! 」

It seems he's one of the few students from a traditional noble's household .

Certainly, it would be troublesome if everyone stole and raped on the battlefield . In that sense, a noble's pride may be important .

But you can't win with pride alone .

「You are the commander of a squad of just 100 people . 200 enemies are charging towards you . What would you do?」

「It goes without saying, I would lead my troops at the front, bravely fighting the enemy until they are defeated!」

「Stupid . 」

「Ow! What are you doing?!」

I lightly hit him on the head .

「First you have to determine the enemy's branch of army . If they have cavalry, then you'll use spears, if they have spears, then you'll use archers, if they have archers, then use infantry with shields . 」

「I'll pull through with spirit and willpow-…… oww!」

I hit his head a little harder and the boy shouts while holding his head in pain .

「Even if you have spirit, don't painful things still hurt you? It'll hurt even more when you get pierced by an arrow and you won't be able to fight as usual . 」

「But you yourself fought with a body riddled with wounds in the past……」

I do recall doing something like that .

「So will you fight 200 people by yourself after all your allies have fallen? Or do you think all the soldiers will stand up against the enemy with willpower alone?」

「Th-that's……」

I look past the silent boy and direct my words to everyone .

「Don't think about fighting fair and square on the battlefield . Just think about how you can fight to win . Digging pitfalls is great, hiding in the shadows and ambushing is also fine…… just win . 」

「Isn't that cowardly?」

「You're wrong, think about it . Let's say you have a muscular miner and a cunning merchant in front of you . You can use any method you like as long as you win against them . Is there anyone stupid enough to brawl with the miner or try to win against the merchant in a battle of wits? I would do the opposite of what they want, since it would be easier to guarantee a win . 」

I might eventually get pissed off and beat both of them up though .

「Think about how you can win using something your opponent is weak against . But there will be times when you can't do anything even after considerable thought……」

Everyone perks up to hear the rest of the sentence .

「That's when you run with your tail between your legs . 」

Everyone slumps over disappointedly .

「Turning your back on the enemy is not an option!」

I ignore their remarks and continue .

「You aren't fighting a war by yourself . You may have equivalent military strength with the enemy or you may occasionally encounter an enemy with a larger force . If you choose not to run and get massacred, your allies will lose that portion of military power and will be forced into a disadvantageous situation . If you retreat and meet up with your allies, you may be able to fight on equal footing . 」

「It's true that what you're saying is ideal! However, nobles live with pride and self-respect . Doing something that would dirty your family name is-……」

I don't think using a clever scheme on the battlefield is something which would disgrace any family though .

「Fumu, the nobles of the former Arkland, they are held in high respect and many of them are brave individuals, right?」

「That's what I have heard . 」

「And where are they right now?」

The boy becomes silent .

「The Treian royalty also seem to have a high social standing, but where are they?」

To be precise, they're actually in my mansion's courtyard taking care of roses .

「……」

「That's right, they're no longer around . This is what happens when you are defeated in battle . Of course everyone wants to win in a beautiful and proud manner . If you have the talent to pull that off, there is nothing for me to say…… if you don't, then it's much better to win a war in an ugly fashion than to lose beautifully . At the very least, that's what I think . 」

To be honest, I don't hate people who fight properly and then get defeated, but I don't want to be like them which is why I said what I did .

There are no more discontent students .

Perhaps it's because they know some people in their family who have done something that would disgrace their family .

「Just now, I told you to run, but there are also times where you can't escape no matter what . For example when you are tasked with protecting your hometown or a girl precious to you . What is important to you…… what situations will you not run from, learn for yourself in school . 」

I bring my speech to a close and step down from the podium .

The students collectively applaud and look at me with sparkling eyes .

Nailed it, it was worth listening to Leopolt speak after all .

Aah, if only there was a girl among these students……

「Lord Hardlett, I'm so moved! 」

「Me too!」

「What!?」

Turning back swiftly, I see two students who are dressed in the same pants as the other students and have short hairstyles but this high-pitched voice is…… .

「There are females here?」

I ask the instructor in a rough tone .

「Y-yes, there are two females in this team…… but as expected, will it be too hard for the girls to become commanders?」

「How wonderful!」

「R-right . 」

I thank the two sparkly-eyed females and think about how I can somehow touch their breasts while patting their shoulders .

「T-then please head to the next class . Lord Hardlett will need to greet all classes, including the class with the hopefuls of domestic affairs……」

Wait, at least let me pretend to encourage them by pushing my cock in them before going……

But my pure intentions were ignored .

I guess I'll have to be content with the girls blushing and getting all happy .

「Hey…… did you see?」

「Yeah, his pants right? You could clearly see the shape from outside, which means it must be huge . 」

「So the rumor about him having a large tool and loving women is true . 」

「You could tell too? He was trying to aim for our breasts while touching our shoulders, right?」

It can't be helped .

I'll go to the other classes and come up with something to say .

Afterwards, the greetings ended without any particular problems .

The prospective commander teams had just one or two females each at the most and some teams with absolutely none, making me sad .

To that point, the team of prospective domestic officials have a relatively higher number of females who plan to become secretaries or aides .

I intended to focus on finding a candidate to aid Adolph in the first place . That's why I'll naturally be concentrating my rounds on this team, it's not because I have any hidden agenda .

The thing which was contrastingly a failure was the personal training conducted outside .

The purpose of this school is to raise commanders so there isn't particularly a need for them to be master martial artists, and they would get enough training to function as a soldier so it wouldn't be a big focus in their lessons .

However, they would not be able to maintain command if they're defeated as quickly as Christoph is, so they need the minimum amount of practice .

That was when they asked me to provide them with an example .

「Listen, to deal with an armored foe, you raise your sword and then ……strike!」

I swing down the two-handed sword in my hands with my full strength .

The helmet of the armor-wearing doll became heavily damaged and the entire doll collapsed to the ground .

「…… you're telling us to slice through, helmet and all?」

「How else would you defeat them?」

「What if the opponent blocks with their sword?」

「Just break their sword and defeat them in one strike . 」

The area was enveloped in a shroud of silence .

I just said what was obvious though .

「T-then what if the opponent strikes first?」

「Watch carefully, then dodge, otherwise block if you can't evade in time……」

I ask the instructor to come at me with a sword and then I intercept the blow .

「Send him flying!」

I take a step in after our swords clash and knock the instructor back . He flies in an arc in the air before hitting the ground and tumbling for a bit .

「Simple, isn't it?」

「No, that's impossible for us . 」

I don't know who said that, but it was in a hushed voice .

What else should I say at this point?

The atmosphere was also strange when Irijina took part in the training .

「I'll be teaching you how to fight with spears!! The enemy will come like zoom, so you block with a clang, then you twirl with a whoosh and then finish with a thrust like boom! Get it!?」

「…………」

「When you're using a spear while riding a horse, make your horse run like bappahh and then with a sudden jerk like-……」

Even I don't understand anything she's saying . It's impossible for Irijina to explain anything verbally .

It would be different if she trained with them every day like she does with Kroll…… .

The sun is setting now and I was just about to leave the royal institution and have a drink with Irijina before going back home, but a carriage stops in front of the school .

「Ooh, Lord Hardlett . It is admirable for you to be doing inspections . 」

It was Kenneth himself who appeared in front of me .

「If it isn't the Commissioner of government affairs…… I didn't see you in the school . 」

「Hahaha, I didn't have any business in the school after all . 」

Then why are you here?

「Don't be such a stranger, Lord Hardlett, I can easily throw a welcoming party for you if you informed me of your arrival in the capital ……」

We're not even on good enough terms with each other for me to want you to welcome me .

「I just wanted to visit the school for some personal reasons . It wasn't something worth announcing . 」

「Oh dear me, you were concerned enough with this school, which is entrusted with our nation's future, to make an effort to come all the way here from your territory . You are truly an outstanding model for the Kingdom's nobles . This Kenneth here is in admiration of such actions . 」

I don't care for his flattery and I really just want to drink with Irijina .

I'd appreciate if he could just spit out what he really wants .

「Actually, I came here tonight to invite you to a ball which will be held in the mansion of one of my acquaintances . It is a little bit on the spur of the moment, but please consider this as a replacement for your welcoming party . If you are so inclined, please travel with me to the party in this carriage . Any others who you would like to accompany you are welcome to join and I will also send them to the mansion . 」

「Haa…… but in these clothes……」

I realized after that was said .

The clothes I wore to do the first inspection of the school were of formal wear .

It isn't the grandest ceremonial outfit but it isn't bad enough to be considered rude if I showed up amongst nobles in this .

……he probably knew that and was aiming for the return trip .

Now, I won't be able to make an excuse to say that it would take too long to change clothes .

「Hm? We're going to drink at a ball?」

Irijina, don't say anything .

I'll buy you a barrel of alcohol later .

「No, but tonight is ……」

My feelings right now are of annoyance but I actually don't mind accepting . However, the banquet with the new nobles is tomorrow if I remember correctly so it would look bad if I attended Kenneth's dinner party first . In particular, arriving in Kenneth's carriage makes it several times worse .

Sensing my hesitation, Kenneth switches target to Irijina .

「Well, look, it doesn't do your body well to remain outside in the cold, please take your follower along and get in . There will be the finest quality of alcohol . 」

「Looks like there will be alcohol there!!」

Irijina gets attracted by the alcohol and gets on the carriage .

I resignedly get in the carriage as well, but being the rational person that I am, I'm not baited by the alcohol like the simple-minded Irijina .

I still haven't decided to go yet .

「Lord Hardlett, pleased to make your acquaintance . 」

「It is an honor to meet you . 」

Inside the carriage are two ladies…… they look a little over 20 and are wearing dresses slightly too thin, but not thin enough to be considered vulgar .

Both of them have large breasts and asses, and their bashful smiles make them extremely sexy .

「These girls are daughters of my subordinates . I hope you don't mind, they asked me if they could see you so I had them come with me . 」

No, I don't mind at all .

The two girls sit up against either side of my body and bring their lips close to my ears .

「I've always admired you, Hardlett-sama . It feels like anything I do with you…… will be fun . 」

「I actually like someone who is a little forceful . I want to become Hardlett-sama's plaything…… just kidding . 」

Their breasts are pressing against my body from both sides and I can feel their breath hitting my ears .

Their hands are placed lightly on my thigh, but they're gently rubbing my gradually bulging meat rod .

「Muu……」

「There is still some time before the ball . Could I ask you to wait for a bit in the carriage?」

The woman pushes her breasts even more against my body .

I can't take this anymore, I'll just go to this ball or whatever .

「……Can my wife and her attendant come to the mansion as well?」

「Of course . Hahaha, then I'll be going in the carriage towards the rear . 」

With that said, Kenneth dismounts from the carriage .

In the wide space inside the carriage, Irijina drinks an expensive-looking alcohol straight from the bottle instead of in a glass while the two beautiful ladies are leaning against me .

「I've often been told that I'm an indecent woman…… they say that I sound like a bitch in heat . 」

「I decided that if I'm going to bear someone's child, it might as well be a strong man's child . 」

The girls openly and lewdly rub my crotch while I also extend my hands towards their breasts .

A Few Hours Later

「Lord Hardlett, this will be tonight's venue - the head of agricultural affairs, Count Irhid's mansion . The rest of your party have been brought here as well . 」

「Such a sudden request really caught me off guard……」

「Haau, me too . 」

The ones who came were Mel and Leah - Mel as my concubine and Leah as her attendant . The escort in Irijina finished all the alcohol and was left drunk in the carriage .

I'll punish her tomorrow .

「Sorry for the last minute notice…… and also, Lord Baldwin, the girls have fallen asleep……」

The two girls are sleeping away in the carriage covered with a blanket .

「Aahn…… your big spear . 」「Give me more……」

「I apologize for that, but those girls weren't invited to the party so it doesn't matter if they sleep . 」

I'm saved .

The two females wrapped in the blanket are bow-legged and their lower halves are covered in semen after all .

However, if those girls were in the carriage and they weren't going to attend the party, that means…… don't tell me I've been tricked!

I can't just say I won't participate now that Irijina emptied the carriage of its alcohol stock and I've fucked the two females .

So this is the world where scheming people live - looks like I've been caught hook, line and sinker in some terrifying scheme .

「Well, I guess I'll go since I've come all the way here anyways . I'll try to enjoy myself . 」

I put my arm around Mel, who is wearing an elegant dress, and act as her escort .

「Uu, this is embarrassing . This middle-aged woman has a husband who is young enough to be her son escorting her, what will everyone think of me……?」

「Is it? I think you're plenty beautiful though . 」

It's true Mel looks considerably older than me, but she still retains her beauty from her youthful days .

If she just smiles, I'm sure it will be me who feels the envious gazes instead .

「Unyyi……」

Leah is coming as Mel's attendant and isn't wearing a dress as pretty as Mel's but she still looks lovely .

She usually isn't too concerned with what she wears so seeing her in this kind of outfit is a fresh look and makes her even more attractive .

When I pat her head, she looks up at me with a smile .

「Well everyone, he may not have been formally invited but Margrave Hardlett himself and his wife was able to make time from their trip to the capital to come on short notice . 」

Everyone raised voices to express their surprise and awe as Mel and I lock arms and enter the banquet hall .

For some reason, Kenneth is walking in front and leading us .

「My, my, this is my first time meeting him . His wife is also gorgeous . 」

「It would be nice if we could get to know each other more in the future . 」

「Having a good relationship in both politics and military is for the motherland after all . 」

Feeling satisfied, Kenneth looks on as the nobles immediately crowd around us and start chatting away .

I see, he wants to appeal to his own faction that he has a strong relationship with me even if he has to bring me with hasty preparations .

I was just dancing on the palm of his hand when I got lured in by the pretty ladies .

However, I was able to enjoy their holes and suck on their nice large breasts in exchange so I can't complain .

It's possible I got them pregnant too .

「So Nonna-sama, who I saw at a previous party, has gotten pregnant?」

「Yes, I don't want to take any chances so she's resting back in my territory . 」

「That's understandable…… so when's the engagement?」

「Haah?」

「The person your child will be marrying……」

The child hasn't been identified as a boy or girl yet let alone born yet .

I knew the traditional nobles in particular marry off their children indiscriminately, but this is way too soon .

What would happen if they got the wrong gender?

It might be fine for two girls, but it would be a tragedy for a guy and a guy to get married .

Conversations with the nobles is just small talk, where I get flattery and ill will alike directed at me .

Unlike the new nobles, a lot of the traditional nobles look down on me as some violent newcomer .

Kenneth may not publicly express his stance but I can see where he stands based on his attitude .

Mel has appeared here and there in the parties that Nonna holds back in my territory so she knows how to conduct herself in this setting to a certain extent .

There were just a few formalities in this party but Mel's rudeness should be cancelled out for the most part by my actions .

I should mention that Carla has also appeared in parties wearing dresses picked out by Nonna .

However, she must have felt that taking off the dress was too troublesome .

She rolled up her dress in the corner of the courtyard and peed while remaining standing, which then resulted in a scuffle when Nonna saw her .

Because of that, quite the fuss was made amongst the local wives about how the wives of the Hardlett family are in discord .

Even though they actually get along quite well with each other .

「It looks like we'll get through things unscathed this time . 」

「I'm sure nothing bad will happen . 」

「This is such a fun party, right?」

As soon as the three of us look at each other and smile, the large doors of the hall opened . Only the invitees of the party were supposed to proceed inside but there was a loud sound which accompanied the movement of the doors .

Protagonist: Aegir Hardlett . 23 years old . Winter .

Status: Goldonia Kingdom Margrave . Great Feudal Lord of Eastern Area . King of the Mountains . Friend of the Dwarves .

Citizens: 155,000 . Major Cities - Rafen: 22,000 . Lintbloom: 3500 .

Assets: 60,600 gold (Capital Hotel Fees -100)

Accompanying: Mel (concubine), Leah (lover), Irijina (escort), Pipi (lover), Dorothea (mansion supervisor, lover), Alice (asshole), Kroll (＿ト￣|○)

Sexual Partners: 151, children who have been born: 32