Chapter 43

"Well, the problem is Vendelin's fiancée..."

Unfortunately, just after Cardinal Hohenheim, a powerful figure in the capital's church, had arranged for Vendelin to be engaged to his granddaughter.

The Margrave of Breichrader was in his office, working on the selection of a fiancée, feeling a sense of futility.

After all, he was Vendelin's guardian.

He believed it was his duty to choose Vendelin's fiancée.

It was already too late, but it would be too harsh to blame the Margrave of Breichrader.

The distance between the southern region of the continent and the capital was considerable.

"But..."

The face of the vassal who brought the materials for the fiancée candidates, as ordered by the Margrave of Breichrader, was dark.

The reason was that there were no eligible daughters in the extended family.

There was a complete lack of candidates.

"All the young ladies are already married."

"Really? I didn't know that."

Indeed, upon reflection, he had attended their weddings, so they were all married.

"Originally, they were too old to be considered candidates..."

In noble marriages, it is generally considered undesirable for the bride to be significantly older.

This is true even for commoners, and the male chauvinism in this world is deeply rooted.

Occasionally, a high-ranking noble would push an older, unmarried daughter onto a lower noble.

If it were a normal guardian-ward relationship, that would be acceptable, but if it were done to Vendelin, the central ecclesiastical nobles would immediately attack.

'To offer a woman of uncertain fertility to the hero who slew the dragon? Tsk, tsk, this is why provincial nobles end up with leftover daughters,' they would criticize, and it was clear that such criticism would come.

"Then, up to one year older, from thirteen and below?"

"There are a few, but..."

There were a few young daughters in the branch families.

However, the oldest was four years old, and the youngest was born just last month.

If a child were forced into an engagement, it would only provide material for attack by the greedy central ecclesiastical nobles.

They would criticize, saying, 'It's meaningless if the other party is not an adult when the engagement is finalized! They can't even have children!'

In reality, there were many couples with significant age differences due to political reasons.

The purpose was to find fault with the Margrave of Breichrader, and any reason would do.

"My children... They're all boys!"

"That's right."

For some reason, the main family of the Margrave of Breichrader tended to have only boys.

While there were occasional girls in the branch families, the results were as seen.

The Margrave of Breichrader was left speechless at his own bad luck.

"That's why I kept telling you to take more concubines."

"But if more boys are born, that would be a problem too."

Without male heirs, the family line cannot be continued, but too many boys also create issues in their treatment.

After all, it would be inappropriate to demote the main family's children to commoners.

"Let's adopt a child!"

"That would also provide material for attack."

'To adopt a child with no blood relation and claim kinship with the hero who slew the dragon?' The greedy ecclesiastical nobles would certainly see it that way, the Margrave of Breichrader thought.

"They are quick to push their own adopted children onto others but are quick to criticize others."

"That's one of their few weapons."

The ecclesiastical nobles do not have their own territories.

Their economic power is far inferior to that of territorial nobles of the same rank.

Therefore, they often compete with major local nobles like the Margrave of Breichrader through their positions, central authority, and political maneuvering.

"By the way, my lord. About Anita..."

"Why bring that up now?"

Anita was the youngest sister of the previous Margrave of Breichrader, over forty years old and unmarried.

She lived a comfortable life at the Margrave of Breichrader's residence.

In modern Japan, she would be considered a housekeeper.

As an uncle, the Margrave of Breichrader could not speak too strongly to her, and it was now difficult to arrange a marriage for her.

He would rather not have her brought up in conversation, as he knew many things about his childhood and had a sense of discomfort.

"Some of the vassals suggest that Baron Baumayster should at least be married in name..."

Many of them looked down on the Baumayster knight family as poor.

They thought an upstart, leftover, older woman would be sufficient.

"That's bound to fail..."

If such a thing were done, the central ecclesiastical nobles would be delighted and say:

'Baron Baumayster, you are being challenged by your guardian. You should respond firmly. Change your guardian.'

A guardian who forces a forty-year-old bride onto a twelve-year-old ward.

The guardian-ward relationship can be dissolved if one party is significantly unfaithful.

Considering compatibility and the management of lower nobles, a new guardian would be found quickly, and the central authorities would not interfere.

"Baron Baumayster is quite shrewd for his age, and Ehrich is in the capital."

It would not be wise to make such a foolish move.

The Margrave of Breichrader preferred Ehrich and Vendelin over the foolish vassals who made ridiculous suggestions out of jealousy.

'(If those people cause any trouble, I'll crush them immediately!)'

"By the way, what about the fiancée candidates?"

"Should we try to adopt from close relatives?"

The next day, news came from Brantark that Vendelin's official wife had been decided, and the problem was resolved.

For the Margrave of Breichrader, it was a less than ideal outcome.

"It's fine now. I will take the lead in arranging the marriage for Baron Baumayster's heir."

The fiancée was the granddaughter of Cardinal Hohenheim and the niece of Viscount Armstrong, the head royal mage, with the emperor's approval.

It would be futile to find fault, so the Margrave of Breichrader quickly changed his mind.

Nobles think and act with decades in mind.

"However, as the party involved, I must say that noble and royal marriages are troublesome."

"As for me, even a minor royal would have been fine. I am grateful for the good nephew thanks to Elise."

"That girl is beautiful and has a good heart. She would be suitable for the somewhat twisted Baron Baumayster."

"Perhaps it's due to her family, but she does have that aspect."

At the same time, in a room in the royal palace, King Helmut XXXVII was having a private conversation with Master Armstrong, a personal friend, over wine.

Only the two of them were in the room.

Very few people were allowed into this room.

Among men, only the two princes and Master Armstrong were permitted.

Master Armstrong had been educated alongside King Helmut XXXVII since childhood and occasionally escaped to play in the city.

They were childhood friends and playmates.

"Baron Baumayster is the eighth son of a knight family. Many people think it's absurd to marry him to a royal daughter."

"But if they insist, what then..."

Noble marriages always have this issue.

Whether the ranks match or not.

However, it is not always possible for everyone's conditions to align perfectly. As a result, older, unmarried daughters of royal and major noble families tend to accumulate.

The ability to support them financially is also a factor in their accumulation.

Because they can be supported even if they remain unmarried, the higher the family, the more such daughters there are.

Sending them as adopted children to lower-ranking families and marrying them off from there is an option, but it is difficult if the other side does not want them as adopted children.

As a result, there were several older daughters in the royal family.

"Anneliese, 35; Diana, 29; Hermine, 27; Hildegarde, 25. Baron Baumayster has the financial means. Some suggest pushing them onto him. I had to sternly suppress such suggestions..."

"If I were in that situation, I would seek asylum in the Arkart Holy Empire."

"I would do the same if I were in that position."

Royal daughters tend to be spoiled, strong-willed, and spendthrift.

Even Master Armstrong thought one would be enough.

"To me, it looks like harassment."

When a royal daughter is sent to a noble family, it is often seen as the highest honor and a noble's pride.

However, looking at the internal situation, it often appears to be malicious harassment.

"They might not even be able to bear children and would drain the baron's assets."

Before that, they would likely dominate their husbands due to their higher status and age.

Or, if the husband were the hero who slew the dragon, there might be a conflict.

"Those who suggested it probably had that in mind."

At just twelve years old, the hero who slew two dragons and became a baron.

His wealth is also significant.

Since he is a powerful mage, they do not confront him directly or harass him openly, but they try to weaken him through such schemes.

It often makes one think, 'Nobles are...'

"Truly, they are all the same..."

Whenever a talented person emerges from the lower ranks, they try to hinder them.

This has hindered the kingdom's development.

'If there were a battlefield, I would send them there to reduce their numbers,' King Helmut XXXVII thought.

"However, the current young man has too much money."

"There's no need to worry."

There are no signs of wasteful spending, and he has donated large sums to the church.

While it may seem like a waste, ignoring the church can lead to problems even for a king, and ten platinum coins are not a waste in the long term.

Even Cardinal Hohenheim was impressed, saying, 'He may be a child, but he is not to be underestimated.'

Hohenheim reported that Elise and himself might be acting, and he might be overestimating the situation.

"There's no need to worry? Does that mean..."

Master Armstrong wondered if the king intended to grant him a territory in the future.

"As you predicted."

Granting a territory and developing it on a large scale.

There is enough funding for it.

That was how King Helmut XXXVII thought.

"However, the baron is still twelve. There's no need to rush. He can gain experience as an adult, and it won't be too late then. But..."

It also depends on what other major nobles and ministers think.

Depending on the situation, it might happen sooner.

Even the king finds it difficult to control major nobles.

"The Margrave of Breichrader seems to have something up his sleeve."

Master Armstrong, who was employed by Brantark, considered the Margrave of Breichrader a troublesome figure.

However, he was still more reasonable than the slick central ecclesiastical nobles.

"Perhaps it's about the unexplored land?"

The land in question is almost unreachable, and the Baumayster family is the nominal owner of the land that clings to the end of the great mountain range.

"But why is it still in their possession?"

"If they wanted to, they could seize it for dereliction of duty in developing the land."

It has been left untouched for over a century.

The central officials thought it would be enough to seize all the land except for the appropriate size for a knight family.

Since a development plan might come later, it was left alone for the time being.

"Furthermore, there is Baron Baumayster."

The option of dividing the territory and giving it to the branch families was also available.

In such a long history, it was not uncommon for the branch families to become more powerful than the main family.

It just so happened that the Baumayster family was one of them.

"He must think it's a good opportunity. However, the baron is still a child. The sin of mobilizing him for the dragon slaying is heavy, but he needs time to live a normal life now."

Moreover, just because someone is an excellent mage does not mean they can immediately become a good noble or a retainer.

Why are Brantark, who has weathered the storms of society as an adventurer, and this close friend before him, valued?

Because they have accumulated that much experience.

"That's right. He is a student at the Adventurer Academy."

"Armstrong, so don't push him around too much."

"I will do my best."

However, even King Helmut XXXVII's request was like the wind through the willows to Master Armstrong.

Seeing this, King Helmut XXXVII was quite amused.

"Alfred, Brantark, and I. It will be interesting to see how our three disciples will live their lives."

Saying this, Master Armstrong drained the wine from his glass in one go.