Chapter 85

My name is Hermann von Bennno Baumeister.

I am a newly appointed noble who has inherited a remote territory.

However, even though this territory is remote, the development of the adjacent unexplored land has begun on a large scale.

Soon, a road is expected to connect the former unexplored land to the Baumeister earldom, and once that happens, contact with the outside world will increase, and the previously isolated territory will become more vibrant.

But, the path to that point was not at all smooth.

I was originally the second son.

In noble families, second sons are generally seen as backups to the eldest son.

Living in the family home as a guest, marriage is delayed compared to the eldest son, and many cannot marry at all.

At the very least, if the eldest son does not have a child, one's life is confined to the room in the given mansion.

As a child, I did not understand this.

The eldest son, Kurt, was mediocre but certainly not a bad person.

However, as I grew older, I gradually came to understand the state of the territory and the family.

Kurt, being the heir, was treated with great care, while I was treated rather casually.

There were also concubines, and the number of younger brothers and sisters gradually increased, but perhaps they were better off.

The younger brothers born to my mother, the legal wife, were preparing to leave the family since they could not inherit it, and the younger brothers and sisters born to the concubine, Reila, were not treated as nobles from the beginning.

As red-blooded individuals, they could become village heads or assist their brothers, and the sisters could marry into wealthy farming families.

I lived as a backup to Kurt, given a room to live in.

Though I was given my own room, it felt more like a cage without bars.

It's not that I disliked my parents.

What I hated was the rules of the nobility.

I began to vent my frustration through sword practice and other activities.

Additionally, I trained with the guard team formed by second and third sons of farmers.

This guard team is usually responsible for maintaining public order.

In times of crisis, they naturally become the core of the noble army.

However, since this is a remote area isolated from other lands, criminals rarely appear.

The noble army, which I did not join, would not have been deployed unless it was for a major expedition like the one to the Demon Forest, which suffered heavy losses in the past.

Moreover, even the maintenance of public order by the guard team is limited.

Occasionally, they would stop fights between villagers after drinking or mediate in intense domestic disputes.

In this territory, even such minor issues require the guard team to respond.

Several members would rush to the scene, separate the parties involved, and listen to their stories to resolve the situation.

Additionally, there were times when they had to hunt down wild boars or bears that wandered into the fields.

They would cooperate with hunters, but often the hunters would take care of the situation before the guard team arrived.

The amount of work for the guard team was not significant.

Occasionally, they would gather the members for training.

However, the members usually had jobs.

Though a certain amount of training was required, it was never strictly enforced.

It would be meaningless to conduct training according to regulations while the fields were left unattended, and my father was promoting large-scale development to increase tax revenue.

Since development was more important than training, I also focused on helping with that.

"Hermann, today's assignment is over there."

I dug up the soil in the location designated by my father, cut down obstructive trees, and with several others, pulled out the stumps from the ground.

Removing large stones and wood debris was also a considerable amount of work.

However, the field I was working on today was to be given to Helge, a member of the guard team who did a good job.

He was the third son and could not inherit his family's fields.

Therefore, I could not afford to fail this development project.

"I'm sorry, Master Hermann."

"That's not an option. If you don't stay in this territory, the already weak guard team will become even weaker."

"Master Hermann, that's a forbidden word."

We burst into laughter with the other guard team members who were helping with the development.

All of us were second or third sons in similar situations, and it was easier to laugh at our self-deprecating jokes than to just complain.

"You are paying a large amount of taxes. Don't hold back."

Helge, who is turning twenty this year, is a survivor of the Demon Forest expedition.

Though he was only fifteen at the time, he was recommended by his family as the third son, who could be sacrificed.

Or, more accurately, he was sent away as a nuisance.

This kind of issue exists regardless of whether one is a noble or a farmer.

I often wonder why I, who was eighteen at the time, was not sent to the military.

Instead, my great-uncle, the captain, and his three sons were all killed, and now there is a rift between the main and branch families.

The eyes of the retainers serving the branch family and the women helping with the development clearly show their resentment.

Though they follow my father's orders, they sometimes look at my father and Kurt with piercing gazes.

I am also a target of their resentment, but perhaps it is inevitable.

I am alive today because of the sacrifices of my great-uncle and his sons.

"Even with that money, there was an option to leave. Since it was taken away, Helge must have his own land."

Helge is not particularly skilled with a sword, and he is rather small and thin.

However, he is good with a bow, has a strong body and endurance, and most importantly, a strong spirit.

As a young man, he served as a messenger in the expeditionary army.

On the surface, the Baumeister noble army and the Breichreiter noble army were on equal footing, but that was not the case.

The former border lord of the Breichreiter family treated my great-uncle and his sons as subordinates, which gradually widened the gap between the two.

My great-uncle positioned the Baumeister noble army slightly away from the Breichreiter army.

This was likely due to the treatment they received, and perhaps he had some idea of their fate.

Since over twenty men survived, they were certainly prepared for the worst.

However, the option to minimize casualties and escape was not available.

If the Breichreiter army had been destroyed while the Baumeister army suffered few casualties, it could have caused problems later.

Especially since the Breichreiter border lord controlled the supply routes for salt and other goods, they could not escape alone.

However, they wanted to save as many young men as possible.

All twenty-three survivors were young men between the ages of fifteen and early twenties.

My great-uncle did the best he could within his means.

At the cost of his and his sons' lives.

However, my father's evaluation was harsh.

"He lost valuable citizens."

As the lord, my father had to take a stance.

He had to reprimand my great-uncle, who had lost most of his forces.

"Indeed, Father is right."

Following my father, my brother Kurt also criticized my great-uncle.

Kurt was an average man but listened well to my father, so it was natural for him to say such things.

However, I realized that Kurt lacked military talent.

At the same time, I noticed that my father had a momentarily regretful expression.

My father probably wanted Kurt to praise my great-uncle.

As the lord, he could not praise my great-uncle, who had lost most of his forces.

But if the heir could praise my great-uncle for bringing back as many young men as possible, it might ease the anger of the branch family.

I was not particularly intelligent, but I understood that much.

Yet, Kurt did not notice.

My father must have been disappointed.

I thought it should have been discussed beforehand.

"More importantly, we need to commend those who returned."

Though I thought it was overstepping, I advised my father to personally acknowledge the returning men.

After all, Kurt could not be expected to show such consideration.

Due to the expedition, I was leading a few villagers on regular patrols within the territory, but I knew that if they made mistakes, I had to correct them properly, and if they performed well, I had to praise them.

They had survived a hell where most of the army was destroyed.

My father needed to commend their efforts and reward them with gifts or vacations.

"Indeed, that is necessary."

My father agreed with my opinion.

And it was actually carried out, but perhaps from that time, he started considering placing me in the branch family.

"Vacations are unnecessary. Rather, they should work on development to forget that hell."

Kurt's stance was understandable given his position.

All the returning young men were second or third sons and could not inherit their family's land.

Since they were not essential, their labor could be immediately utilized.

While it was a necessary decision for the development of the territory, it came from the perspective of being the eldest son.

I understood it, but emotionally, I did not like it.

Most of the returning young men were mentally exhausted.

During my great-uncle's absence, I read books in my father's study and came across a description of war neurosis.

If one experiences too much trauma on the battlefield, they can become mentally ill and be of no use as a soldier.

According to their accounts, the monsters launched a night raid with a large army.

As a result, they became abnormally afraid of the darkness and sounds of the night.

With the male members of my great-uncle's family all dead, I had to temporarily lead a small guard team.

I had hoped to rely on the experienced men, but in such a situation, I could not invite them.

"I'm fine."

Fortunately, a few mentally tough young men joined the guard team.

Among them, Helge stood out.

My great-uncle appointed Helge as a messenger to the Breichreiter army to ease the tension between the two.

This attempt was somewhat successful.

Though the senior officers of the Breichreiter army were still high-handed, the soldiers of Helge's parents' generation treated him kindly.

"You've had a tough time, being caught up in the rivalry between the lords."

"As a messenger, it's good training for my horse, so I don't mind."

"You have a good character. I've grilled some monster meat, so eat before you leave."

"Thank you."

"Young men, don't be shy, eat as much as you can."

In this way, he was treated kindly by the lower-ranking soldiers.

Then, on that fateful day, when Helge went to the Breichreiter army's camp as a messenger, they gave him something.

"We probably won't survive. You must live no matter what. Here, take this."

Though I don't know exactly what it was, he received several monster fangs.

As a messenger, he managed to skillfully control his horse and escape to the outside of the Demon Forest.

Together with the other survivors, he eventually made it back to the Baumeister territory, but then a terrible situation befell him.

Despite surviving, Helge and the others were taxed by my father.

They had earned some money from hunting during the expedition, for which the Breichreiter border lord had provided a reward.

"Father, that's really too much."

"You might be right, but the law is the law."

However, in reality, the rewards balanced out the taxes.

"Besides, they probably won't have much money left..."

Indeed, my father was right.

He might have known this and imposed the tax according to the rules.

All the survivors were second or third sons.

Their treatment at home was as you can imagine, and they had to give up most of the money they had earned with their lives.

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