第２０３掘：王者としてのハーレムとは (Part2)
What Seraria and Deryu said was perfectly reasonable.
For Yuki, who must constantly search for ways to save the world, dedicating his time and thought to solving the political problems of a single individual or nation is, by any measure, impossible.
"As he puts it himself, he claims that is also a necessary task."
"That’s Yuki’s bad habit. If he keeps doing that, he’ll end up with more trouble than just the individual woman he’s taken under his wing."
"Indeed. If he just took them and made it a matter of fact, he could settle for providing funds and supplies, then leave the steering to them."
"Even now, with Roschur, Gartz, Litea, the Demon Territory, the country ruled by the Hero Taiki, and Zilba in the New Continent, he’s left most of the steering to others, yet we wives are already so busy we have our hands full."
"That is also a problem. Originally, a harem is meant to have people waiting on you, not to make them work."
"And besides, the only ones whose presence really matters are me, Rurua, Shera, and Deryu."
"Leave me out of that. A princess is a title that holds almost no meaning, after all."
"In that case, three. And in the New Continent, the presence of a beastman like Shera is almost meaningless."
"So, effectively two. And those two are currently sidelined by pregnancy."
"We’re nowhere near having a proper harem, are we?"
"We aren't. Yuki and we ourselves consider everyone a legitimate wife, but from the outside, everyone except the three I mentioned is just a concubine. A three-person harem is, well..."
As the two said, while it is technically a harem, the significance of it as a king’s harem is far too weak.
As mentioned, other than Seraria, Rurua, and Shera, the others have almost no political power.
While they certainly possess the individual combat prowess and the ability to handle minor matters that Yuki desires, negotiating with those who hold real power requires either showing overwhelming force—as he did in Zilba—or intentionally adopting a subordinate stance.
In this continent, Yuki has already taken princesses of well-known nations as wives, so there are no issues with negotiations, but in the New Continent, he is merely a mercenary.
"I mean, in the New Continent, even if we wait on him, it’s nothing more than being bodyguards."
"Flaunting our authority from here wouldn't make any sense over there, would it?"
"I wonder if he could somehow marry a princess from one of the leading countries in the New Continent."
"That’s an impossible demand. Yuki himself is... well, you know."
With that, the two turned toward Yuki, who was being lectured on what a harem should be.
"...And so, Master, you must continue to take more wives!!"
"No way!! Reducing the time I spend with Kirue and the other wives any further is something I cannot accept as a husband!!"
"...B-but even if you say such things..."
Ah, Kirue’s face turned red at that retort.
"That’s unfair."
"It really is. When he says something so charming, you don't want him touching other women."
Indeed.
I truly think so, too.
However, it is also a fact that to reduce Yuki’s burden, he needs a beautiful, influential princess in the New Continent.
And I am the only one well-versed in the situation there.
"I should investigate various things and consult about it at the wives' meeting."
In reality, the two of us, Ria and I, are not enough for his protection.
It wouldn't be a problem to have a princess bodyguard as well.
...The most influential candidate is that tomboy princess from Zilba, but...
Hm? Am I forgetting something important?
***
side: Agil Thomson, Capital of Enaria
"Heh, it’s impressive how they managed to gather this many soldiers in just two weeks."
"What are you talking about? We said from the beginning that once we gathered 200,000 soldiers at the fortress, we would begin the recapture and the invasion."
We are currently having this conversation while looking down at the 100,000 soldiers gathered below.
During our audience with the King, we two were appointed as commanders-in-chief, receiving the gracious order to retrieve the Holy Sword and the Holy Sword User, and then to proceed to conquer the Zilba territory.
"So the preparations were already underway. But I wasn't supposed to go on this campaign in the original plan. I don't have any information on the enemy at all. The fortress, the town of Betan, the town of Suate, was it? Which one are we attacking? Or are we going for both at the same time?"
"That’s right. This operation is a single-point breakthrough. First, we will cooperate with the lord to take the town of Betan."
"Betan... isn't that the place where the lord is someone Prism is indebted to?"
"Yes. People around call him a shut-in, but given the reports from our spies, he’s an incredible person. He intentionally showed surrender and obedience to feed us information. Of course, we verified it ourselves to make sure there was no deception."
"Heh, that’s amazing. So, what’s the intel?"
"It seems there are two Magic Sword Users at the fortress, one Magic Sword User at Suate, and a mercenary serving as the commander at Betan. In terms of troop numbers, it’s 20,000 at the fortress and about 2,500 at the town."
Hm?
Did I just hear something strange?
"Sorry, Prism, you said a mercenary is stationed as the commander at Betan...?"
"Yes, that’s right."
"What does that mean?"
"The lord and I view it as a trap. Betan is relatively wealthy, so one would assume the Zilba army that occupied it would place their main combat strength there, right?"
"That’s true. Its harvest yield is the highest in the region."
"So, if we head toward Suate, which is relatively easier to conquer, and get held up by the Magic Sword User there, what do you think will happen?"
"I see. If we split our forces carelessly, the Suate front could be wiped out. Even if they aren't, there’s a possibility of being pincered by the fortress and Betan. I see, so the plan is to take Betan—where the commander is just a figurehead mercenary—in one fell swoop to gain the advantage."
"Exactly. We have the overwhelming advantage in troop numbers, but after hearing how they took the fortress in an instant, we could be defeated if we disperse our forces carelessly."
"So, we’re securing our footing first?"
"Yes."
From what I hear, there is no problem with Prism’s strategy.
I’m not good at thinking about strategy, and since there doesn't seem to be any particular issue, I’ll leave it to her.
Research is my forte, after all.
That is why I pushed the report brought by one of the soldiers to the back of my mind.
After all, it’s impossible.
A light projectile flying from far behind to break down a gate?
What kind of magic is that?
And so, that was the harem briefing.
In Yuki’s case, it’s not just about having women wait on him.
In this situation:
Seraria, Rurua, and Shera are the harem members with political power.
The others are concubines, and it’s questionable whether they even reach the level of being in the "harem."
Well, their combat ability is exceptional, so if he relies on brute strength, solving problems is easy.
However, it is natural that this will cause problems for future developments.
Yuki understands this, but he is Japanese at heart.
Don't ask for the impossible. He’s already at his limit as it is.
Ah, the Enaria army in the second half.
Please worry about them a little!!
The enemy is coming!!
They’re in a pinch!!