After killing Selin, I locked myself in my room for a few days without doing anything.
Of course, being locked away didn’t mean I was starving and barricaded, spending my lonely time in despair.
I wasn’t alone; Plona, Eleonora, and Lavina clung to me all day, so I barely had a chance to feel bored.
However, we had put aside the intensive combat training that we hadn’t taken a break from since sneaking into Iron Grave, and instead, we leisurely chatted and enjoyed some brief free time.
From my position, having lived every day like I was being chased, it felt quite awkward to experience such leisure, but it was peaceful enough that even that awkwardness was hard to shake off.
Even Eleonora, who had always kept her guard up, was curled up, napping and washing away the fatigue brought on by war, while Lavina occupied a corner of my desk with borrowed magic books from the Grand Duke’s Castle library, busy with her regular activities.
And the one I was most worried about, Plona, was slowly passing through the stages of recovery.
For about two days after Selin’s death, Plona clung to me like a frightened child, crying silently whenever I moved even slightly away from her. Thankfully, by the third day, she was recovering rapidly and was nearly back to her usual self.
Of course, there were still signs of unease, but one can’t keep living under self-imposed suggestions indefinitely. This, too, was a gateway to moving forward.
“I’ll move forward… huh.”
During the period of rest, I kept pondering.
Where is “forward”? What direction should I take from now on?
I now knew all too well, thanks to Plona’s incident, that my actions and values heavily influenced those around me.
Plona may have been a bit extreme, but Eleonora and Lavina also acted according to my intentions, and after the war, even vampires I didn’t recognize kept an eye on me just by wandering around the Grand Duke’s Castle.
Even though I didn’t hold an official role in the Sahelrn Duchy yet, this situation was already happening.
The symbolism of being the Progenitor of Vampires, the powerful force I had exhibited on the battlefield, and the obvious submission from Martini were all circumstantial evidence fuelling vampires’ expectations that I would become their king and lead them.
“If I just mention it, Martini will spring into action immediately.”
It was merely a matter of fact that he hadn’t approached yet due to the aftermath tasks, but I had felt such indications several times already.
I had already resigned myself to donning the crown. And once I received it, it was obvious my every move would influence many more people than it ever had before.
– If you wish to become king, remember how the end of a mere strong ruler turned out. A ruler blind to reality is undoubtedly an evil king, and there will be no vampires following a ruler without ideals.
I recalled the advice Jeil had given me some time ago.
Is experience something to be underestimated? His words were now penetrating at the heart of the matter.
“The important thing is ideals.”
With a word from the king, countless vassals act, and through the actions of those vassals, even more commoners are influenced.
Commoners and vassals merely need to follow orders, and while it’s best if they give their utmost in their roles, at the very least, as long as they follow commands well, they can be expected to be above average.
But a king is not allowed that.
A national leader who floundered without principles could lead their country to oblivion, which probably isn’t uncommon throughout history in this world.
Ideals were necessary. A vision was imperative.
To ensure I wouldn’t waver, and those who followed me wouldn’t either, I had to have a clear direction.
I needed to show what kind of future I envisioned.
A tower of cards that could fall apart with a change of whim wouldn’t do. I had to give them certainty that a happy ending awaited them if they believed and followed.
I questioned myself.
What is the ultimate future I desire?
What have I fought for, what am I fighting for, and what will I fight for?
As my first step, providing a one-dimensional and abstract answer wasn’t too difficult.
What I wanted was the right to live in this world. And a world where those who believed in and followed me are rewarded, as I had decided on the day I vowed to return the favor.
Next, what was needed was realism.
To ensure ideals don’t just remain ideals, I needed a basis that would convince everyone that I could attain the future I desired.
Throughout my period of rest, I constantly deliberated over concrete ways to reach my aspirations.
What could I do?
What was something only I could achieve for a better future?
Solutions so idealistic they border impossibility wouldn’t work.
Solutions that are overly cold and realistic, leaving no room for expectations wouldn’t do either.
I had to find a path that would instill hope that this was feasible within the realms of reality.
I sought to derive answers I could comprehend based on everything I had seen, heard, and felt as I fought tooth and nail till now.
It was a tough task. After all, aren’t ideals by nature detached from reality?
A battle raged in my mind as I wrote and erased lines over and over again.
What does a world where those who believed in and followed me are rewarded look like, specifically, and what systems would be needed to realize it, all while continuously questioning if that was something realizable.
This time, I didn’t ask for advice from Plona or Eleonora, nor Lavina.
Regarding this matter, they should assess whether the conclusions I reached were satisfactory or not.
Listening to others’ opinions is different from lacking conviction. If I don’t fasten the first button myself, I’ll merely be swept by the surrounding winds in the end.
As another day passed, then another, and then a third day went by.
The day I finally faced my own wishes, I received a message from Martini that the aftermath of the war had been wrapped up, at least for now.
“Is the aftermath all finished?”
“Yes. Aside from tasks like rebuilding the entrance to the collapsed passage that can’t be completed in the short term, generally, things are wrapping up.”
In the Grand Conference Room from that earlier time.
Finally able to breathe a sigh of relief, Martini nodded in satisfaction.
From what I heard, although war had brought substantial damage, thanks to the captured prisoners, the pastures were relatively plentiful, and they could use supplies left behind by the retreating allied forces to feed those prisoners, hence gaining quite a benefit.
Just by looking at Martini’s expression alone, it was clear that he seemed more at ease compared to before—the reality of having successfully weathered a significant wave.
“It’s finally over.”
“…Jeil. You haven’t done anything aside from fighting, have you?”
“I thought it was enough to bring in the reinforcements. What could I do in the way of aftermath recovery? Isn’t it inappropriate to meddle in another country’s internal affairs?”
These two are bickering again.
Their constant display of mutual disdain left my confidence spiraling downward rapidly.
Is it really possible to tie these two together? After pondering this for a while, I found myself still lacking any certainty.
“…Well, it’s fine. I can’t deny we were helped. So are we heading back now?”
“If we have permission from the client, there shouldn’t be any reason to linger. How about it, Progenitor? Are you satisfied?”
With his legs sprawled on the table, Jeil sought my agreement.
Here we go.
As Jeil put it, the contract I initially proposed was to assist in this war.
With the war now over, he had undoubtedly fulfilled his obligation.
“But this can’t be the end.”
No matter how many times I considered it, to move closer to the “most realistic ideal” I envisioned, Jeil’s power was needed.
A miracle was needed again to overturn what was originally a desperate situation in which vampires had no chance of winning.
But wishing for that would indeed constitute a breach of contract. I had no idea how Jeil would react.
“Yes, I’m satisfied.”
“Good. Then—”
“However, before that, there’s something I’d like to ask of all of you here.”
Ah, the first to understand was none other than Plona, Eleonora, and Lavina.
They were recalling what I had hinted at just before joining the battle.
With their determination to follow no matter what I said evident in their gazes, I found a little courage.
“I’ll get straight to the point. Martini, do you have any plans on what to do going forward?”
“…If it’s acceptable to you, Progenitor, we wished to request that you lead us like this.”
On the day I had to run away from the Sahelrn Duchy, she had conveyed to me her hope.
The long-empty throne of the Vampire King.
Martini, having realized that I knew how things would unfold, didn’t hesitate to bow her head and express her wish.
Yet, perhaps feeling a late sense of guilt over dragging me into the affairs of the Sahelrn Duchy, it communicated a willingness to respect my decision rather than a demand.
“Sure. I will be your king.”
Martini’s head jerked up. Evidently surprised by my readiness, she looked quite dazed.
My resolve was well-prepared. What we were discussing now was not even close to the secured backing from Martini—there was a greater matter to tackle.
“And Jeil, I’m going to ask you: do you have any intention of reconciling with Martini?”
“Of course not. There’s no need to talk about reconciliation. Our thoughts were different, and we walked different paths, so how can one side bow down now?”
Just as I thought. But that leaves me in a tight spot.
Yet, even as Jeil rebuffed the idea, he didn’t get up or show any signs of wanting to leave, as if silently urging me to say something more.
Leaning back in his chair with an air of indifference, I began to wonder if there was a chance after all.
“Then how about entering under me instead of Martini?”
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