第１５９２堀：新しい部下 (Part2)
"I trust you understand, Yuki-sama, but while we held titles, we possessed neither land nor domain. True independence would have been a difficult path to tread."
"At best, I suspect we would have been married off to some regional lord, merely entrusting our titles to them. King Selva certainly treated us with a certain degree of respect, but I doubt he ever believed we were capable of managing land ourselves. Not to mention the envy we would have invited from those around us."
"Ah, that’s true enough. Even Seraria didn't have any land or territory of her own."
Had Seraria not ascended to the throne, she would have been wed to a duke or a noble of similar standing. Since that never came to pass and she served as a general in the royal capital instead, it was easy to see why the court had been at a loss as to how to handle her. It stood to reason that Quar and the others under her command had arrived at the same conclusion.
"Well, while that is certainly one facet of the situation, I am convinced that, regarding the territory, Her Majesty simply found the prospect of management to be a tiresome chore. It is only since she acquired Weed—and you, Yuki-sama—that she has applied herself with such diligence."
"You're right. Seraria was never one to enjoy the minutiae of land management, was she?"
"Indeed. Her Majesty’s true talent lay in vanquishing foes. To those of us who knew her in the past, seeing her as she is now is quite the revelation."
"Exactly. It always felt as though she were permanently mounted on horseback, charging headlong into the fray."
Come to think of it, I hadn't heard much about Seraria’s time as a general in Roschur, but had she really been launching sorties that frequently? She was truly no different from Marly. Then again, they wouldn't have appointed a princess as a general if she didn't have the mettle for it. It would have been a waste of operational funds; her position must have been earned through sheer capability.
"Now, while reminiscing about Her Majesty’s past is all well and good, shall we finalize the reassignment of these two?"
"Right. I’ve confirmed their resolve. I’ll leave them in your capable hands."
"Understood!"
Both of them snapped a crisp salute in my direction. Watching them, Quar gave a satisfied nod.
"In that case, I shall take my leave. I must inform Her Majesty that these two have been officially reassigned."
"Fair enough. Tell Seraria I appreciate the help."
"I shall. Though, I suggest you tell her yourself when you return home."
"Will do."
With that, Quar offered a final salute and stepped out of the office. Once I confirmed she was gone...
"Now, as for the specifics of your duties... first, let’s get you two settled at your desks."
My office was already packed with Ria, Jessica, Samantha, Cleena, Nina, Prof, Orelia, Hobis, Yayui, and Lyushi. Including Sisua and Sona, that brought the total to thirteen, myself included. It was a small number compared to the scale of the subordinates I oversaw, but looking at the office, which had once been so cavernous, I couldn't help but feel how much it had filled up. Fortunately, since Steve, John, Surakichi-san, and Mino-chan often dropped by, the room had been designed with plenty of space, so we still had room to spare.
"Do you have any preferences for your seating?"
"No, sir. My work remains the same regardless of where I am stationed."
"I felt the same, though if possible, I would prefer to avoid a spot where the air conditioning blows directly on me."
"Oh, I agree with Sona on that. It tends to dry out the air too much."
"Fair point. Though, I’ve taken that into account for this office. The vents are positioned to the side of my desk, so you shouldn't have any issues wherever you choose."
The placement of heating and cooling units was an unexpectedly critical issue. Back when I worked in Japan, I’d been stuck in a spot where the air hit me directly—leaving me shivering in the summer and sweltering in the winter. I’d made sure to be mindful of that here.
"I see. In that case..."
"If that’s the case, we should sit together..."
With that settled, the two of them quickly chose their spots. We moved on to discuss the upcoming port construction, but since the situation on the ground was fluid, we concluded that our next steps would depend entirely on the arrival of Dressa and her group tomorrow.
These are new characters, but they’ve actually been part of the cast for quite some time.