Book 11: Chapter 12: Pathetic
Planet Augur.
The planet, which was once treated badly by deputies sent from the Empire, has undergone great development.
It has become an important base in the war against the High Kingdom, and a huge budget has been invested in its development.
Resource satellites were brought in, and the planet was being converted into a base at the same time as it was being mined.
The spaceport continues to expand, attracting merchants from all over the Empire.
They are working hard to gather goods for the imperial army fighting against the High Kingdom.
If you have people, money, and goods, you can develop even if you don't want to.
A conference room in the spaceport.
There I received a report.
"The number of our forces has been drastically reduced to half."
Klaus was reporting on behalf of the others, but Tia and Marie, who were standing on either side of him, were pale.
After all, if you look at the results alone, the Banfield family was defeated.
"The High Kingdom's nation also suffered considerable damage, so if you look at the overall result, it's a painstakingly even split. But the damage to the Banfield family was too great."
Klaus is right to blame me.
"I understand. I don't blame you for this."
Klaus talks about the future.
"Our troops will not be able to move for a while. It will take time to regroup."
"You and Tia are in charge. I'm going back to my own territory."
"And what do you mean?"
Klaus was amused when the Supreme Commander said he was returning to his domain.
"I said I'm going back. As soon as the ceremony is over, I'm going back to the territory. Argos needs maintenance and resupply, so I will use Marie's fleet. I'll bring back the wounded, too. --You will take my place."
"Ha, ha!"
I shoved the Acting Supreme Commander to Klaus and got up from my seat.
I sat down. I felt a little heavy as I looked at the three of them in confusion.
"--I guess I didn't make it in time."
I let out a small sigh, and Klaus looks at them standing a little further away from the place.
Rinho and Fuuka are red in the cheeks after being slapped by me.
"Liam-sama, aren't you taking the two of them back with you?"
I give a sharp look at the two who are getting ready to talk about the topic.
"They are too lazy to meet with their master. --I'll leave you two to guard this place. Klaus, you can use them as you wish. If they complain, report them to me. I'll make you pay for it with my own hands."
Rihno and Fuuka both trembled slightly at his angry words.
One-Flash School deserved to win.
It is said that they put up a good fight against the Arachne manipulated by Aluna, but the two who failed to win are a disgrace to One-Flash.
When I approached them, both were looking down in frustration.
"Don't bring shame on the master in the next battle."
With that, I turned my back on them.
After returning to the home of the Banfield family, Marie and Liam were moving through the hallways of the mansion.
In a vehicle like an open car, the two aim for a place where facilities such as hospitals are concentrated.
Marie was wondering.
"Liam-sama, what can I do for you?"
"Hmm? It's Rosetta."
"Rosetta-sama? What's happened to Rosetta-sama?"
Marie pales when she learns that something has happened at the mansion that would cause Liam to return to the estate even though he is in the middle of a war.
Something might have happened to Rosetta? Such fears were right on target.
"I guess so."
Liam, who is calm, does not seem to be concerned for Rosetta's safety.
As an aristocrat, he might be the right figure for a person who stands above others.
However, it was hard for Marie.
Marie heard from Rosetta about her feelings for Liam.
There was genuine love there, not just as a political marriage.
Marie honestly wishes she had a little more to worry about.
When they arrive at the room where Rosetta is and get off the ride, Brian, who was waiting for them, comes running up to them.
He then collapses to his knees, crying in front of Liam.
"Why--why not sooner?"
Brian usually cries a lot, but today's appearance was different from usual.
The first thing that comes to mind is the fact that the two of them have been in the same place for so long.
Normally, she wouldn't interrupt, but today she was different.
"What in the world is going on, Mister Brian?"
"Rosetta-sama--Rosetta-sama!"
Marie breaks out in a cold sweat as Brian mentions Rosetta's name.
As she imagines the worst, Liam walks past Brian.
Marie squirms at the slightly stunned look on his face.
"Liam-sama, how--how can you be so unconcerned? Is that what Rosetta-sama is to you, Liam-sama?
Liam narrowed his eyes and shook Marie off.
"Let go."
Marie sat down on the floor and was about to burst into tears when the door opened.
There was Rosetta.
"Darling, welcome home! Oh, dear? Why is Marie crying?"
"What!?"
Rosetta, dressed in her nightgown, shows Marie that she is fine.
Liam's head was tilted back.
"I have no idea, Marie just started crying. I don't know."
Liam stammers, and Rosetta smiles and invites him into the room.
Marie looks at Brian, who is crying, unable to comprehend the scene.
"Rosetta-sama seems to be in good health?"
Marie looks at Brian, who is crying, not understanding what she is seeing. "I can't tell you how long I've been waiting for this day!"
Brian cries again.
Perhaps hearing his voice, a cry comes from inside the room.
It is the cry of a baby.
"Hu-hya-oyaaaahhh!"
Marie, who is so surprised that she lets out an outrageous scream, jumps up and runs into the room.
Inside Rosetta's room.
A small bed is provided next to the large bed.
In addition to the maids, several nurses are present.
Although not shown, Kukri's men, the dark side, were also stationed there.
And then there is Amagi.
She closed her eyes when she looked at me and lowered her head slightly, but when she raised it, she seemed to smile a little tenderly.
Rosetta went to the small bed and held the baby in her arms.
"Darling, it's our baby."
Rosetta, awakened by motherhood, smiles happily as she holds the child in her arms.
She looks into the face of the baby in her arms and sees that it has stopped crying.
In my previous life, I had cried tears of joy, but the first thought that came to my mind was, "Is this really my child?"
This is my child, who will rise to become the most powerful nobleman in the empire.
There was no room for an interloper to enter the picture.
I understood that, but at that moment, all I could do was feel uneasy.
Rosetta urged me to hold the baby.
"Here, darling."
"Mmm."
She takes the baby in her arms and looks at me somnolently.
"He doesn't mind."
"I feel safe," she says. You're used to holding babies, darling."
"Hmm? Yes, I am."
I didn't think I would ever see a situation where I could use my previous life experience.
I was holding the baby, and Marie was watching from afar with envy.
And Brian was filming us.
"Liam-sama, please smile more."
"I refuse."
With that, I hand the baby to Rosetta.
The way Rosetta held the baby in her arms reminded me of my wife in a previous life.
No, it's my ex-wife.
--I've made it this far and am about to destroy even an empire, but I am still disturbed by the bad memories of my previous life.
I feel ashamed of myself.
"Rest a while. I'll take care of the work. Marie, take care of Rosetta."
Marie quickly approaches Rosetta's side as she says this.
"I'm at your service! Rosetta-sama, please take a rest."
Marie is overreacting.
Turning his back to Rosetta and the baby, Liam walks away.
The most important thing to remember is that you can't just leave it at that.
"Ignore her and leave the room."
" -- Pitiful child."
I leave the room and come to a place where Rosetta can't hear our conversation, and I confide my feelings to Amagi.
"What do you mean?"
"The poor child."
"The young lord will be born into a ducal family and will enjoy a more privileged life than the average person. Isn't this what people call good fortune?"
"If his father had not been me, he would have been a winner."
"Master?"
"I am a villain, you know."
He was born in the best house in the empire, a Duke.
And his mother is Rosetta.
So far so good, but unfortunately, I'm the father who is the biggest scoundrel in the empire.
My poor child, born in the house of a villainous lord.
I would have felt less sorry for him if he had been someone else's child.
Poor kid, he'll have to bear his father's bad deeds just because he's my child.
Amagi looked at me silently.
Her expression was somewhat sad, but I couldn't help but say something.
"I feel sorry for that boy, but it's his luck that he was born as my child."
In the room where Liam and Amagi left.
Marie was happy to see Rosetta holding the baby in her arms and shedding tears of joy.
The only thing is that Rosetta looks sad.
"Darling, isn't he happy about the birth of this baby?"
Marie tries to ease Rosetta's fears by telling her how unlikely it is that that Liam doesn't.
"No, of course not! We are in the middle of a war with the High Kingdom. Originally, Liam-sama would not be able to return until after the war. It was too much for him to go back."
"Is that so?"
Brian, who had just finished filming, spoke to Rosetta, who was depressed.
"Liam-sama is also confused about his own child."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. --Liam-sama has spent so little time with his parents. Even when he was a little boy, he showed a mature attitude and acted as a lord. He was dependable, but now that I think about it, I feel very sorry for him."
His parents moved to the capital planet when Liam turned five years old.
Even then, they had little to do with Liam.
Brian smiled sadly.
"Such a young lord Liam-sama was born. This Brian, really--really--"
Brian starts to cry, covering his face with his hands.
Rosetta brought her face close to the baby's. She watched from the corner of the room.
Watching over the situation in the corner of the room was the spirit of a dog.
It was watching over Rosetta and the baby the whole time to make sure the guide did not do anything bad.
Essentially - if there was ever a time to inflict psychological damage on Liam, now was the best time.
If anything had happened to Rosetta or the baby, Liam would have suffered psychological damage.
The spirit of the dog disappears from the room, saying its role is done.
Six months later.
The war between the empire and the kingdom was temporarily settled.
The reason for this was that both sides had suffered no small amount of damage.
The Banfield family's fleet has been reduced to half, while the High Kingdom has had its territory ravaged by Liam.
The High Kingdoms are also raiding Imperial territory, but it does not hurt Liam.
As a result, the standoff continued.
Then, Liam returned with a fleet to the planet Augur.
"We lost half our fleet six months ago, but it was worth it, wasn't it?"
A meeting was held with the top management.
Liam was proud to say that the Banfield family's army had been expanded too quickly.
"We've expanded our forces too quickly. And we've taken on too many people we don't need. It is fortunate that we were able to wipe out all the useless people in this war."
Liam's executives look at him with reluctance, as if the war with the High Kingdoms is some sort of sifting process.
The ones who seem unconcerned amidst all this are the big executives, including Klaus.
Tia and Marie were even smiling.
"I think Liam-sama is right. The fleet that Klaus and I have reorganized can definitely be called elite."
Tia reports her face has changed after experiencing real combat, and she is pleased that the Banfield family's army has regained its vigor.
Marie remarks on the disappearance of the notable."
"It was a good thing that the incompetents were gone."
She says this after the deaths of so many of her allies.
Klaus advises Liam, while many others are not convinced.
"I have to say that you've gone too far in your sifting."
Liam smiled wryly at Klaus' words.
"I wouldn't have done it in peacetime either, but we're running out of time. The Emperor and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince have me stumped."
Liam stood up from his chair, and his expression turned serious.
The executives gasped at Liam's supremacy.
"-It has become an undesirable situation to be absent from the territory for an extended period of time. We don't have time for this. This time we will be sparing no expense."
"Liam-sama, that's-"
Klaus tried to stop him, but Liam gave him a noncommittal air.
"We're going all out."
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