Far from the territory of the Kingdom of Altfode lay a unique country that didn't exist in the world.
The reason it was called that is because it was the only place on the entire planet where a sub-race known as "demihumans" lived.
Strange hybrids that looked human but weren't.
There are 3 sub-races of demihumans: the first are the "hobbits," people the size of children between 5 and 6 years old, but all are adults; they're distinguished from human children by the size of their sheep-like ears. The older they are, the larger and hairier their ears become.
Next are the "beast-folk," and as the name indicates, they're the most fantastical of all sub-races. Humans with animal ears, but among them, only those who have tails are considered pure-blooded; mixed-breeds don't possess tails and are mistreated by the pure-bloods.
And finally, the most important. Among the 3 sub-races, there exists a hierarchy that they maintain no matter what.
Those at the bottom, who are almost like servants, are the hobbits; those in the middle, who are soldiers, are the beast-folk; and those who serve as nobility and royalty are the race that always appears in fiction stories.
The elves.
With long pointed ears, golden hair, and green/blue eyes.
The elves are the ones with the highest life expectancy among all and are always the ones in charge.
The hierarchy in this country called the Holy Kingdom of Valhanna has always been that way and never changed.
Until today.
In the palace of the capital, which had always been a symbol of power and superiority, an uprising was taking place.
Soldiers and servants ran everywhere. Some causing destruction, others fleeing in panic, and others taking lives as if they were insects in their path.
Since all elves had the right to hold the throne, power rotated every 4 years.
Once a family chose their representative, that person was elected as king at the time, then had to pass the power to another.
This avoided unnecessary disputes, but among those elves, there was one who didn't like this system.
His family, several hundred years ago, had been chosen and couldn't take power again for another 216 years.
That elf with beautiful facial features was born during the time when his family held power.
He spent 113 years of his life enduring it, but couldn't take it anymore.
He convinced his best men and rose up in power.
The rebellion against the royal family was so intense that they destroyed the palace in the process, regardless of who got hurt.
That man stood before the current king, who had lost his family and was begging for his life while crawling through that river of blood.
"Please, stop."
"If you want the crown, I'll give it to you, spare my life."
"No."
With that simple, icy word, he immediately slit the king's throat with his sword.
The crown fell from the deceased king, and the elf picked it up from the pool of blood as if it were nothing.
He placed it on his head with pride and smiled like a child receiving a prize.
"Everyone! We finally did it, my wish. No, our wish will come true."
All the demihumans present: elves, beast-folk, hobbits, shouted with jubilation upon seeing their new king.
"For years we have been marginalized, despised, looked down upon, humiliated, ridiculed, and all those words that only someone of lower class would have."
"But we haven't said them, they have. The humans!"
"Yes!"
"Death to humans!"
"I want to see those hairless ones die!"
Everyone shouted fervently due to their strong hatred of humans.
"That's right. Humans looked down on us when we're better and superior to them. They're nothing like us."
"We possess talent in magic, superior physical strength, a military industry stronger than theirs."
"Then... why do we let those worms marginalize us here?"
"We've been locked up here for years and must remain away from them. Do you like being treated like pets?"
"No!"
"Do you want to reclaim the world that belongs to us, the true humans?"
"Yes!"
"Thanks to these fools, we could never exploit our potential and were piled up here like pieces of meat waiting to be taken! But now they're gone and we're free!"
"That's why here and now I..."
A girl with long ears entered the room where the king and ministers held their audiences and, upon entering, saw the enormous number of bodies scattered everywhere.
"Findorr nii-sama, please reconsider! You don't understand that what you're doing will only bring problems and tragedies for us!"
"Shut up!"
He said while threatening her with his fist.
"That era is over, now my era begins! The era of the true humans, and for that I declare war on humanity!"
"The third world war begins now, and our first target will be the one who defeated our greatest enemy!"
The words he spoke would forever mark the destiny of this country.
"The destroyer of the Supreme Kingdom of Aster!"
"Uryyyyyyy!"
◇
After several days, we finally arrived at the Bradford barony.
I've seen this image so many times in my life, and it always brings a smile to my face because it's the place I've belonged to since I came to this world.
The ship we came on was Avrora, which survived the war, since my other ship, Schwert, was destroyed by Zero in the republic.
The ship docked at the port, and once the bridge lowered, I was the first to disembark, since my family and some maids were waiting for us.
It was unusual for everyone to be here, but I was actually happy that they came to welcome me.
"Family, I've finally returned—"
After saying those words, my dad came running toward me; I thought it was to give me a hug because he hasn't seen his third son in over half a year.
But my hopes of being received affectionately were crushed like his fist that came straight to my face.
My father, a man similar to me but with a beard, the head of the barony, Walt Von Bradford, hit my cheek so hard that it reminded me of when I was beaten in childhood for scaring the chickens.
Once I stood up, I touched my swollen cheek and said to him:
"What the hell is wrong with you? Why are you hitting your son who was studying abroad? Have you gone senile?"
"That's what I should be saying, you idiot son!"
My father was crying; I thought it was because he hit me, but it was for another reason.
"You don't know how I've been suffering for these 6 months because of you!"
"My fault?"
My father explained something I didn't expect at all.
"My wife, the village women, and all the maids in the territory look at me with disgust, all thanks to you!"
"Why is that my fault?!"
"Because everyone thinks I have an illegitimate daughter and that you're forcing her to call you 'onii-chan'! Answer your mother and tell her that I don't have a daughter from the Reinfield family!"
In that moment, I understood everything.
(So Ada-san really told my mother that Erselica is my half-sister!)
Months ago, when the Lucy incident occurred, the maid I could consider as an older sister, Ada, said she came to spy on me to make sure I didn't do anything improper; they always saw me having tea or eating with Erselica. Once she said she would send a letter to my mother saying I don't have a relationship with her, but that she's my half-sister; I told her it was a mistake, but she sent it anyway.
It was my fault for not making sure she didn't send it.
My father continued crying while covering his face.
"Your mother, since she read that letter, has given me the silent treatment and doesn't speak to me; all the women look at me as the worst. No matter how much I beg her or show her my evidence, she still doesn't believe me that she's not my illegitimate daughter."
"Please, Rudel! Tell your mother that I haven't been unfaithful to her!"
I stood up and looked at my mother, Sonya Von Bradford, who was looking at me with indignation.
"Mom, I swear, dad doesn't have any illegitimate daughter."
"Then explain to me why in this letter that girl was calling you 'onii-chan'!"
Alisa and the others started coming down, but they froze when they heard my mother; everyone was looking at me, especially the idiots.
Chlust, Warren, Clovis were murmuring along with Frey, while Erselica was frozen.
I was thinking about what to say, I needed to come up with a good excuse. Before I could say anything, Ixion appeared to my rescue.
"Master's mom, allow me to explain."
"Uwaah, you're that strange thing that always accompanies him, don't scare me like that."
"I'll ignore that. The reason why the master is called 'onii-chan' by Erselica is real, but there's a reason for it and that is..."
I was thinking about what a loyal companion she was.
"Because he's a pervert who enjoys making a girl with no family or money call him brother."
But she proved to me that she'll always be a traitorous scum.
"The master adores his younger sister too much, so he thinks about her every day; then, upon seeing Erselica, who lost everything in such a vulnerable state, he took that opportunity to give her shelter, food, and financial support; that's why Erselica calls him onii-chan."
"It's her way of having insurance against starvation."
Each thing she said was worse than the last; everyone's expressions distorted with the fear or disgust they felt toward me.
Ixion, even if it's to have an excuse for Erselica, you're sinking me.
My reputation will be equal to that of a sex criminal, without having touched anyone.
I could see how the maids looked at me with contempt and hid my younger sister, protecting her from me.
Enough, this hurts me a lot, especially now when my heart is so fragile.
Everyone's gazes focused on Erselica, who didn't know how to respond.
Our eyes met and she, upon seeing me, immediately knew what to do.
Her expression said while raising an imaginary finger: "Don't worry, I understand what I must do so your reputation doesn't sink."
Come on, Erselica, save your big brother.
Then she started crying, bringing her hand to her small chest.
"I really don't mind. I lost everything, I'm very happy to have a place to belong, even if it's pretending to have a family, which makes me happy."
She said all that while crying; it's certain that she thinks she's helping me, but...
(Erselica!!! You're making everything worse! I understand you think you're helping me, but your words are really the opposite!)
"Poor thing, she's being emotionally blackmailed."
"I never imagined the kingdom's hero would be such a vile man who takes advantage of a poor, wounded girl."
"He really is the worst kind of man there can be."
The maids' voices were evident.
Enough, my heart hurts so much.
I want the earth to swallow me.
Now everyone will think I'm a manipulative scum with women.
While I felt their gazes of repulsion, my true goddess appeared saving me.
"Mother-in-law, I'm very sorry for the misunderstandings you've had about your son."
"But Rudel isn't a fetishist maniac like everyone is thinking."
"It's true that his relationship with Erselica is very strange, but Ixion already explained to me beforehand that Rudel only protected her out of pity. The palace was going to execute her if not for him; the only way to protect her was to keep her by his side."
"Therefore, I ask everyone not to look unfavorably upon Rudel, who only had the bad luck of helping in the wrong way."
(Alisa...)
I looked at my future wife who saved my skin.
Her beautiful smile vanished like her warm eyes when she sent me a look.
"Of course, his way of acting with his younger sister is somewhat shameless; I recommend Rudel stop acting like a little child with a minor."
It seems even Alisa looks at me badly when it comes to my cute angel.
I guess it's natural; this isn't my previous life where it was normal to be very close to your younger relatives.
"I-I'm sorry, it was my fault."
"See? It was all a misunderstanding."
My parents were doubtful, but they accepted it, especially because Alisa had a higher rank than them and they couldn't contradict her.
It was the typical "your word against mine" scene taken to a higher level.
"So Rudel is just a weirdo, something normal for him."
Those hurtful words came from the family's firstborn, Lyle Von Bradford.
"It doesn't matter if you're present or not, you always bring problems to the family."
The first thing my stupid older brother does is belittle me as soon as he sees me.
Well, this is typical of Lyle.
Before responding by insulting him, he said to me: "Anyway, it's good to see you after so long" while extending his hand to me. It was unusual for him to behave like that with me.
After getting up, two more people came down accompanied by my other older brother, the second son, Bram Von Bradford.
Both brothers were similar to me, but each had a physical characteristic that differentiated them. Lyle was the self-proclaimed attractive one, Bram was the strong one, and I was the unremarkable one in the family.
Lyle and everyone else were left with their mouths open looking at two girls who were here now.
"Bram, don't tell me you..."
"Not at all, they're Rudel's, that's the correct answer."
Immediately everyone looked at me.
The first to introduce herself was Sara, demonstrating her high-level education and elegance.
"It's a pleasure to meet you all. It will be some time before I'm considered family, but I want you to treat me for now as part of your family. My name is Sara Ciel Rosenberg, the daughter of the internal chief of the Supreme Kingdom of Aster."
The next to introduce herself was Lucy, who was in a wheelchair; she suffered nerve damage and that's why she can't walk or exert much physical effort.
"Like Sara, I'm not yet considered part of your family, but I'll strive to be recognized and hope to be humbly accepted into the Bradford family. My name is Lucyelle Liz Vermillion, I'm the priestess of the sacred tree of the Supreme Kingdom and also the first woman to whom Rudel swore to protect from any crisis."
I went cold when she said that; I immediately looked at Alisa and Airi, who were smiling, but Airi had her hands on a pillar and I could hear it creak; Lucy immediately said: "The last part was a joke!" and Alisa rolled her eyes to the side in a gesture of resignation.
I saw my family, who were frozen; they looked like a black and white drawing and, suddenly, my dad lunged at me.
"What did you do this time?! Didn't you think about your fiancées? Do you want the duke to kill me?"
Everyone turned to look at them and Alisa simply shrugged her shoulders and Airi raised her hands as if saying "Whatever at this point"; they made me feel like I'm a hopeless man and can't reproach anything.
New footsteps were heard coming from the ship and the last people on board were coming down; the mouths of the sailors, maids, and my family opened like a whale's mouth, and the fear and panic were evident because of who they saw.
Liam was coming down holding his mother's hand.
The queen changed from the simple clothes she was wearing to more formal ones; in fact, everything she wears is fine, but now she looked as if she were about to go to an elegant party or a ministers' meeting.
Upon descending from the bridge and touching solid ground, Liam released her hand and walked radiantly straight to my family, who were terrified.
I could hear their thoughts like "What is Her Majesty the Queen doing here?" and "Did she come personally to execute us because Rudel hit her son?"; my family's panic was so visible to me and I could read their minds.
Queen Lecia stood before my family and greeted them elegantly.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, I am the royal consort of His Majesty, Lecia Von Altfode."
"Y-Y-Yes! It's a pleasure to have you before us, your humble servants!"
Everyone present knelt in synchrony and she laughed.
"Please, rise, this isn't a formal visit but an informal one; you can ignore the greetings, I just came to say hello and ask a favor."
My father, trembling like jelly, asked her using the best vocabulary a farmer could use.
"W-What do you mean by that?"
Everyone's legs seemed like glass, wobbling. The queen pointed to Liam, who approached and again my family got scared.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, I am the crown prince Liam Von Altfode."
"Lord and lady of the Baron Bradford family, I ask you to listen to my selfish request..."
"Could you please take care of my son in your territory for a few days?"
Exclaimed the queen almost begging, joined her hands and bowed her head.
"I ask you from the heart! This boy wants to stay here with the others until classes start."
"I know it's annoying for you to have a stranger in your lands, but I implore you to listen to my request. I swear I will reward you."
I decided to explain her request to my family because they were still stunned.
"The stu—King Leonis ordered me to be the official caretaker of Liam and Erselica, so I can't leave them alone. Therefore, I hope you'll let him stay here until we return to the capital."
My family seemed about to faint, as it was too much to process.
Suddenly, the queen approached my mother and lightly touched her belly.
"How happy you must be, how many months along are you?"
"A-ah, it will soon be—"
My mother had gained more weight and I hurried to prevent Lecia's misunderstanding.
"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, but I think you're misunderstanding something. My mother isn't pregnant, she's fat. She's too old to have another baby."
After saying that, everyone's expression froze. Alisa, who was behind me, pulled my cheeks while still having that blank expression on her face.
"Rudel, what the hell are you saying?"
Ixion came close to my ear to tell me: "You're truly incredible, I never thought you were so dense as to not realize that your mother isn't overweight, she's pregnant."
Now it was me who froze.
One second passed.
Then two, then three.
Until after almost ten seconds I finally reacted.
"It can't be!!"
"Seriously? You weren't fat?"
"How irresponsible of you to have a new child at your age!"
I shouted at my mother everything I was thinking.
"Now, because of you, I've been looking like a fool for months!"
"Don't answer your mother like that, you spoiled brat!"
My mother pulled my ear hard.
"First of all, it's your fault for not asking."
"Second, it's your fault for believing my belly was fat and not a baby."
"And lastly, I'm not old! I'm still young and can give birth to two more children because I'm young!"
"You're the oldest one here! I'm worried about you!"
"Stop calling your mother old!"
Now my father was pulling my other ear, it hurt a lot.
The queen laughed quietly while watching the situation.
"You really get along well, that's the wonderful thing about families. I wish... mine were that lively."
She seemed sad, but then returned to her gentle smile.
"I'm very sorry, Your Majesty, I regret that you saw how shameless my son is. No, I deeply regret all the problems this boy has caused; as his mother, it's my fault for not knowing how to educate him properly."
"Calm down, Mrs. Bradford. The Marquis—your son is a young man with a wonderful future for the country. In fact, I consider he was well raised, since, despite what the nobles and ministers did last year, he didn't leave and defended us."
"Only someone who truly cared about this country and was raised by excellent parents could be someone with a fervent desire to protect his family and the royal family that also turned their back on him."
"Rather, it is I who should thank you for having a wonderful son. Yes."
At that moment, the queen's gentle gaze rested on me, but, instead of being a gaze of gratitude as indicated, it seemed like that of a woman thanking life for making her a woman.
"Thanks to your son, my life has improved in every way. I just wanted to tell you that."
Her red cheeks and the soft, almost sensual tone she used indicated that the queen really wanted to make true what she told me: "Thank my parents" for bringing me into this world.
That's so erotic that I never really thought something like that was possible. Thank you very much.
After those words that my parents didn't understand, they cried and prostrated themselves before her.
"Your Majesty, the Bradford family swears it will always be loyal to you and the kingdom. Thank you very much for your kind words about our foolish son."
My parents were truly pitiful, almost to the point of seeming like Erselica's real parents.
"As I said, it's fine. By the way, Mrs. Bradford, you haven't answered my question yet. How many months along are you?"
"About nine months. Possibly any time this month it will be born."
I responded surprised to my mother.
"9 months? So you had this child while I was away?"
"Shut up, Rudel!"
The queen touched my mother's belly again.
"I still remember when Liam was inside me. He kicked a lot and I couldn't move much, but when he was born, I felt an enormous happiness that I can't explain."
"Children are a blessing for their families and more for the country. I hope the baby you have is born healthy and brings you happiness."
"D-do you want to stay and rest too, Your Majesty?"
"Thank you very much, but I must decline. I must return to the palace; the headless chicken runs everywhere and the ministers shouldn't have so much free time."
"It was a pleasure to meet you. I bid you farewell and hope to see you again in the future."
After saying those words, she turned around and my family, like everyone present, said goodbye.
A palace knight came running to take her to the ship that would take her back.
But while walking with him, she suddenly turned back almost running and took my hand.
"Marquis Bradford. Please take care of my son."
"Of course, I'll take good care of him and prevent him from drowning in the river."
"Hey, I'm not stupid enough to drown in one."
Then she approached me in a position where no one could see her and said:
"I'll also do my part so we see each other very soon. Darling."
She seemed to want to kiss me, but showed me a heartwarming smile and, raising her hand in a farewell gesture.
The woman who has moved my heart the most boarded the ship that took her back home.
◇◇◇
Once the queen boarded the ship, the family's youngest daughter and only daughter, Paula Von Bradford, jumped toward Rudel with joy.
"Rudel onii-chan, I can finally hug you!"
"Paula-chan, my sweet angel!"
Rudel hugged his younger sister and everyone saw an expression of joy that he didn't show to others; his fiancées were jealous because he doesn't smile at them like that. They think it's because she's his little sister, so they don't think about it more.
Except for Erselica, who was biting her arm in frustration.
"It's barely morning and it's already a stressful day. Rudel, tell your companions that we'll get in the carriage to go to the train to reach home."
Rudel was again left speechless.
"Train? There's a train here?"
"To be exact, it's my train. I built it," responded Ixion so all present would know that he did it and no one else.
Rudel asked him: "When did you do it?" and Ixion responded: "It was after the Derrick incident. I didn't want to fall behind and ordered the barony's robots to do it."
"You took too many liberties. The territory is my family's, not mine."
Ixion looked at Walt due to Rudel's complaint; he knew what that implied and responded to his son while still looking at the floating sphere.
"Well, one of those things told us what they would do and the benefits too, so I didn't see anything wrong."
"See, matter resolved."
Although Rudel didn't like Ixion making decisions alone and especially with third parties unrelated to him.
"Well, the train should help a lot, since a train has never been categorized as something bad, right?"
When they arrived at the station, they were surprised to see the number of people there.
There were three types of trains: one for passengers that needed to travel through the territory, another for transporting cargo, and one for having business deal dinners.
It was a success, despite being a small territory that only has farms and a port.
Once everyone boarded, they observed the changes in the territory. There were new buildings representing commercial companies and sponsors of armed units.
It looked almost like the capital of a small country.
After 30 minutes by train, unlike the hour it would take by carriage, they arrived at the Bradford mansion.
Everyone was surprised to see that shack called a house was the size of a castle.
"Hasn't it gotten bigger since the last time?"
Rudel asked and Ixion explained it to him: "The mansion was too small for the level of interest your family was receiving, so I decided to enlarge it. A big house indicates more status and power."
"I hope you asked for permission for that."
Ixion ignored him and continued forward.
"You didn't ask for permission?!"
The family, who saw their house being demolished and built from scratch without spending a single cent, said nothing and just continued forward like everyone.
Once inside, Rudel was going to look for his room with Bram, but were stopped by his father.
"You two, a moment. I understand you want to rest, but there are matters to attend to first."
The two stopped and asked him the reason; his father said:
"It's an important meeting for the family, I'll explain inside."
"Can't it wait?" asked Rudel and his father, with a serious look, said: "It's better to get this over with as soon as possible." The brothers nodded and went with their father to a meeting room.
But on the way, Walt stopped and looked back.
There were Alisa and Rudel's other fiancées; she asked: "Is something wrong, father-in-law?" which made Walt start sweating.
(How do I tell them without being rude and having the duke kill me?)
"You see, Alicelotte-sama."
"Please call me Alisa."
"Alisa-sama."
"Just Alisa."
"Alisa... chan?"
"Better."
"This is a meeting for the Bradford family only, you don't need to come."
"But we're part of the family, aren't we? The baron's matters will become Rudel's matters and, therefore, my matters."
"I understand that... the thing is...?"
His father didn't know how to explain it, so Rudel explained it to her.
"My father means this concerns the current family exclusively. It's not something that affects the duke or anyone else."
Alisa finally understood.
"So that's what it was, my fault. It's something related to your family exclusively. Very well, we'll withdraw then."
"I wonder where our rooms will be, Alisa."
"I think we should see where Rudel's will be before deciding."
They left and Walt sighed.
"I still can't believe you have 4 fiancées now."
"I know, do I deserve a prize, right?"
"Of course not!"
◇◇◇
The entire family gathered in an elegant room and, in the center, four armchairs grouped around a square wooden table.
Rudel sat on the left with Paula. On the right side, Bram with his mother; at the front was Walt and at the other end was Lyle, the heir, who was the first to speak.
"What do you want to talk about, father? It's unusual for you to call us like this."
"Actually, I think this hasn't happened since before Paula was born and it was only to say there wouldn't be anything to eat for a while."
"Lyle, that will come later. First there's something we need to know."
Walt looked at Rudel and asked him directly.
"Rudel, we want an explanation of everything that happened since you left. We've been notified by the palace about what you did up to the recent war where you got involved."
"We want to know the reason for your actions, since in the territory there are some scared people. Being told that you started a war just because is something terrifying for everyone."
(Is that what the stupid palace people told them? They really hate me a lot.)
"Alright, but..."
Looking at his younger brother, he said:
"I'll omit details and leave the events to your imagination."
Everyone understood why that response was given and Rudel began to tell his story of the events, omitting details about the reincarnated, the game, and the artificial intelligence.
The family made horrified faces with everything he said and, when he finished telling his story:
"Those idiots."
His father hit his seat.
"I can't believe they really risked their entire country over damaged egos."
Rudel's words, as he explained what he did, only saddened his family.
Sonya, almost in tears, told him: "I can't believe they hate you so much and went to such extremes. But Rudel, you couldn't control yourself either. I understand they made you angry, but even so you shouldn't have treated them so badly."
"Mother, I understand what you're saying, but those people were so stubborn that I just wanted to give them some humility. It's true I went too far, but I tried to negotiate with them using talk and peace, and they trampled on it."
"Their ego and ultranationalism were so strong that it clouded their minds and there was no alternative but a fight."
"I understand. But even so I can't stop thinking about those poor people who were involved by their own government."
Hearing the truth behind a war left everyone frozen. They couldn't understand how Rudel was so calm after what he said and omitting the grotesque parts.
Lyle said while looking at the ceiling: "In the end, everything was the fault of patriotism and resentment over not losing their hegemony. How strange pride is; you can lose everything just by clinging to the idea of not moving from your position. Truly, how foolish they are."
When he said that, his expression showed sadness.
(They remind me of myself, that I was a fool for thinking about trivial things and hating my current life. If I had gone to war with that kind of thinking, I would have died without a doubt.)
To get rid of the bad taste in his mouth, he addressed Bram.
"Even so, our Bram was surprising."
Bram had been quiet since he arrived, but reacted when Lyle teased him.
"You faced enemy soldiers to save Ada-chan, right? Wow, how manly you are, are you going to ask her to marry you or something?"
"S-shut up, Lyle! Don't joke about that."
Despite saying it, Bram was red as a tomato.
After laughing a bit, Lyle addressed Rudel.
"Hey, Rudel, I have a question."
"Hmm? What?"
He responded vaguely while eating a cookie that Ixion brought.
"Couldn't you just leave? Take your fiancées and leave as soon as possible?"
Silence overshadowed the laughter toward Bram.
"I couldn't," responded Rudel looking at him fixedly. "I couldn't leave without Lucy or Sara. I couldn't leave them either, especially when Randolf-san has to bear the weight of an entire country on his shoulders."
(That and the game's consequences too.)
Bram finally spoke and asked Rudel how he felt.
"How are you after that? Are you okay?"
That simple question left him dismayed. Never before had a family member asked him that and he responded after thinking about it a bit.
"Yes. I'm fine, in fact I stopped feeling bad a while ago. I simply treated it as 'It happens' and matter resolved."
"But I would appreciate not being asked more about the topic. I came home to rest and clear my mind."
"Understood," everyone said after hearing it.
Walt resumed the conversation with a "coff" and then said:
"Well, returning to the topics to discuss in this family meeting."
He raised the fingers of his hand: "There are two topics of utmost importance."
"The first is about Rudel; we all already know he became a marquis, and that's the issue."
"He's a member of this family who can no longer be categorized as a normal member. He's the creator of his own secondary branch that surpasses us. I understand you might think this means we'll merge, but no; the palace wants the Baron Bradford and the Marquis Bradford to be different titles, but from the same family. A separation would indicate problems for them."
"People would never believe that we're the main branch, but by not separating, it would indicate we have some order among us."
"Therefore, from now on, all family matters should be treated specifically as for the Baron Bradford, and the Marquis Bradford's matters would be others."
"Understood," all present said.
"That was the first point; now comes the more complicated one."
Walt looked fixedly at one of his sons, Lyle.
He thought he would hit him for the vase he destroyed a few days ago, but what he said was a bomb for everyone.
"I want to announce the engagement of one of my sons. To be specific, Lyle's."
Everyone was surprised to hear that, more than Lyle himself.
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To finish the fanservice, we end with Lecia, since we won't see her again from here: https://danbooru.donmai.us/posts/10235845?q=hornet_%28kancolle%29+
Here is the Mega link where you can see the chapters with illustrations in PDF format, as well as the characteristics of the characters and armor: https://mega.nz/folder/75wTzA4b#W-_qGvlSP9miCm1jpk54IQ