Little Tyrant Doesn’t Want to Meet with a Bad End

A few days later, Roel laid his eyes on the nostalgic sights in the Ascarts’ manor before sitting down on a sofa to soothe his exhaustion. Alicia settled down beside him and slowly sipped on a warm cup of tea.

Celebrations broke out in Ascart City following their return.

News about Roel defeating one of the Six Calamities had started spreading to the nearby countries. In particular, the rate of propagation was exceptionally fast in the Ascart Fiefdom, to the point where it was already known by every household by now.

While the Six Calamities were threats beyond what ordinary civilians could fathom, Shrouding Fog’s devouring of Tark Stronghold had inflicted mental trauma on the Theocracy’s civilians. Over the past year, those ancient monsters had become entities that evoked terror on mention.

Yet, during this climate of fear, the people of the Ascart Fiefdom learned that their proxy fief lord had defeated one of those terrifying ancient monsters. This reassuring news comforted their uneasy hearts and greatly galvanized them.

As soon as Roel’s convoy entered the city gates, the city streets that had fallen quiet after the onset of winter swiftly filled up with huge crowds, looking almost like sardines packed in a can. The people welcomed their hero’s return with the loudest applause they could offer, bringing about a festive atmosphere even before New Year’s Day.

Even after they had entered the Ascarts’ manor, the buzz on the street could still be heard.

This was incredible considering how the Ascarts’ manor covered a huge swathe of land, and the main building was built a fair distance away from the closest street. Not even the bustle of New Year’s Day had been able to reach this place.

The excitement was palpable inside the Ascarts’ manor too, with Anna and the other maids walking around with beaming smiles. They, too, were delighted by their young master’s return.

“Young master, shall I turn on the noise filter?”

“No, it’s fine. It’s nice to soak in the bustle every now and then.”

Infected by the atmosphere, Roel watched the commotion on the street from the windowsill while rejecting Anna’s suggestion. Alicia also smiled at the bustle.

“Lord Brother is really popular amongst the people. It goes to show that everything you have worked hard for over the past few years hasn’t been in vain.”

“But I haven’t done anything much for the fiefdom ever since enrolling in Saint Freya Academy,” Roel said with a bitter smile.

He didn’t think that he had done much for his people since the Ascart Fiefdom hadn’t been on his list of priorities in recent years. His hands were full dealing with the changing environment, the invasion of the deviants, and the threat of the evil cultists that he didn’t have spare energy to handle anything else, which resulted in a slowdown in the Ascart Fiefdom’s economic growth.

He thought that he would lose the support of the people as a result, but the situation was the opposite of what he had expected. To be honest, he was bewildered.

“Lord Brother, you might have taken a back seat in the governance of the Ascart Fiefdom, but our territory is still developing in accordance with the blueprint you have constructed. From the construction of roads to the economic partnership with Rosa, you are the mastermind behind the policies that have brought prosperity to our fiefdom. Our people recognize what you have done for them.”

“But the economic slowdown in the recent two years…”

“We had to conscript many of our abled men and dispatch them to the eastern border in order to deal with the invasion of the deviants. That led to a contraction in our workforce, resulting in a slowdown in our economic development. Nevertheless, we’re still the fastest growing territory in the Theocracy at the moment,” replied Alicia.

She was reminded of how Roel had cooped himself up in his office for days at end to formulate a comprehensive long-term economic development plan for the Ascart Fiefdom, and it pained her how much work he had to cope with all alone.

Anna also nodded in agreement.

“Young master, we’re only halfway through the blueprint you have envisioned for the fiefdom, but it has already brought about massive improvements. Our people are leading much better lives than before, and they are earnestly grateful to you for it.

“Besides, you have contributed greatly to the fiefdom in other ways over the past two years too. Last year, you won the Challenger Cup and brought glory to not just the Theocracy but our Ascart Fiefdom too. This year, you defeated an ancient monster terrorizing humankind, bringing renewed confidence and hope to the people in this tumultuous time. It’s only normal for our people to respect you,” said Anna.

“…”

Roel pondered upon Anna’s words before nodding as well.

While the common populace hadn’t been directly exposed to the horrors of war yet, they could sense the reverberations of it. Unease had already settled in their minds as they went about their lives as per normal.

It was at times like this that they needed a pillar of support more than ever. They wanted to find someone strong whom they could trust to protect them.

While the Ascart House might not have been the most reliable governor during peacetime, their military prowess was reassurring during wartime. With Carter spending most of his time in the eastern border in recent days, Roel was slowly becoming the new faith of the people.

That realization brought about an increased weight on Roel’s shoulder, but when he thought about the people whom he wanted to protect, his conviction was strengthened. No matter what happened in the future, he would never bring himself to cast aside the Ascart Fiefdom.

Anyone who dared to threaten his homeland would be met with his vicious counterattack.

What he was more concerned at the moment was Carter though. The thought of his father reminded him of a matter that left him with a headache.

“Anna, when will my father return?”

“According to the news from the Holy Capital, our master should arrive tomorrow morning?”

“I see,” Roel murmured with a sigh.

A long time ago, before he had awakened to the Ascart Bloodline, Carter didn’t bear much hope for his future and thus assigned him a single mission—bear babies. He was probably thinking of compensating quality with quantity.

However, everything that happened afterward messed up that plan. As Roel began proving his capabilities, Carter decided to grant him greater autonomy to do what he needed to.

That being said, Carter had already urged him to bear offspring on numerous occasion ever since he had reached adulthood, especially after war officially broke out between humankind and the deviants. No matter what happened in the war, a noble house would benefit from having more offspring to continue its lineage.

Without a doubt, Carter would attempt to exert pressure on Roel this time too. He might even go a step further to force Roel to it done… and it was clear as day who the bride was going to be.

Roel looked at the silver-haired woman beside him with a peculiar expression.

Just to be safe, he thought that it was best to first talk things out with her so that they could be on the same page should Carter raise a ridiculous request. After all, it would be ridiculous to ask Alicia to bear a child when it hadn’t been long since she reached adulthood.

So, Roel smiled at the woman sitting beside him and spoke.

“Alicia, there’s something I need to discuss with you.”