Chapter 23 - Untitled

From Ceasefire to End of War, and the Decline Equivalent to the Effective Disappearance of the Alliance

~Gialpha Star System Fourth Planet (Gialpha Galaxy Empire's Capital Planet) At Sea Within the Atmosphere~

　Sangou descended into the atmosphere of the Empire's capital planet and was quietly floating on the sea in an area where the water depth was such that even her own hull, a giant compared to ordinary ships navigating the seas, landing on the water would pose no problem whatsoever.

　The war between the Gialpha Galaxy Empire and the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance reached a turning point with the execution of the operation to turn Sangou into a cannon.

　The ceasefire negotiations from the Alliance side, triggered by the complete neutralization of one super-massive fortress and its occupation by the Imperial military.

　That, surprisingly, through twists and turns from there, would connect to a future that develops into a peace treaty.

　Now, five years have passed since the start of such a ceasefire, the peace treaty was concluded about four years ago, and the war between the two nations had ended long ago.

　So why is Sangou landing on the sea, openly displaying to the Imperial military the fact that she possesses three abilities: atmospheric descent capability, atmospheric flight capability, and atmospheric departure capability?

　Let us look back at the circumstances leading up to that.

　

　What were the movements from the time of the withdrawal from the super-massive fortress on the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance side to the present day?

　First, let us organize the events that occurred in chronological order from there.


　At the stage when Sangou succeeded in the first bombardment of the super-massive fortress, the local supreme commander inside the Alliance's fortress immediately realized that resistance was pointless.

　Because if you are subjected to bombardment from complete out-range that easily penetrates the robust shields the super-massive fortress boasts and causes enormous damage, there is no effective countermeasure whatsoever.

　Moreover, in this case, the first shot accurately struck the so-called vital point where the fortress's most important facilities were located.

　For the commander, it was not impossible to think that hitting such a fatal vital point from the start was a 'coincidence'.

　However, having the main cannons used for counterattack disabled by that first shot and the maintenance of the shields themselves rendered precarious, he was forced to realize that 'continuing resistance by staying in the fortress, itself' would mean the same as 'being toyed with and killed'.

　From the enemy's perspective, as long as bombardment from a safe position is possible, they could continue it until the complete destruction of our fortress is achieved.

　An elderly man of excellent ability, worthy of being selected as the front-line commander in the Alliance military.

　Such a man, following his own instantly derived judgment, immediately issued the order for 'total retreat' without any hesitation.

　This was the movement of Alliance vessels observed by Sangou.

　The fact that the retreat action was initiated in a form observable by Sangou within just a few minutes after receiving the bombardment.

　This fact serves as proof that 'the proficiency of the Alliance's military personnel is also considerable'.

　Of course, completing the Alliance side's retreat required a certain amount of time, and during that, the super-massive fortress was also subjected to a direct hit from Sangou's second shot.

　That second shot also accurately struck an important part of the fortress, a fact that the aforementioned commander was in a position to know.

　The commander, who ordered an immediate retreat at the stage of receiving the first shot, became certain through that fact that his orders were not mistaken.

　But that is a trivial matter, having nothing to do with Jin or Sangou.

　The commander who decided on total retreat communicated an emergency report to the highest authority elected by the democratic procedures of the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance.

　Of course, due to distance issues, a direct line could not be opened.

　Therefore, it was a report in the form of sending recorded footage, but given the gravity of the situation, efforts were made to deliver it as quickly as possible.

　Receiving such an emergency report, the Alliance politicians were thrown into a great panic.

　They, who only give orders to soldiers from a safe place, had to admit the fact that continuing the war had become impossible.

　No matter how much the politicians ordered 'do it', impossible things are simply impossible.

　Already, one of the two routes connecting the Empire's sphere of influence and the Alliance's sphere of influence was as good as under control.

　That the continuation of the war was impossible was a natural judgment even for politicians not well-versed in military affairs.

　Especially since one of the super-massive fortresses they had confidence in as a fighting force was so easily and quickly defeated.

　Even politicians who were not military experts could not help but perceive the difference in fighting strength between the Alliance and the Empire.

　Moreover, what would happen if they considered the possibility that the other still-intact fortress could also be destroyed by the same method?

　That there was no path other than abandoning the continuation of the war was clear even to the eyes of citizens at the public level within Alliance territory.

　Therefore, the government of the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance acted.

　The issue here was that the options were largely divided into two.

　Was it a permanent abandonment of war?

　Or was it a temporary ceasefire, setting a ceasefire period?

　The discussion naturally became confused, but if they dawdled and continued debating without reaching a conclusion, there was a possibility that Alliance territory would be ravaged by the Imperial military again.

　Considering the past history and the people, goods, and money lost so far, for the Alliance politicians, ending the war permanently by abandoning the war with the Empire was tantamount to suicide in terms of their political careers.

　The conclusion thus reached was a temporary ceasefire whose core was paying a considerable amount of gold to the Empire in exchange for setting a twenty-year ceasefire period.

　That what was decided as 'government decision' at this time was merely a 'terrible conclusion' resulting from politicians refusing to admit their mistakes and resorting to self-preservation goes without saying.

　Thus, the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance sent an urgent envoy to the capital planet of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire by the fastest means of transportation for ceasefire negotiations.

　This became the starting point, and through a series of twists and turns, it connects to the order to cease attack issued by the Emperor of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire towards Sangou and the Imperial military in the previous chapter.


　Changing the scene, the imperial capital of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, where the envoy from the Free Democratic Alliance had arrived.

　At the feet of the Emperor, a fierce war of words unfolded, with the envoy displaying assertive eloquence and the Imperial Prime Minister and senior civil servants counter-arguing.

　However, in the end, the military disadvantage of the Free Democratic Alliance side in terms of combat strength was clear.

　No matter how assertively the envoy spoke, they could not overturn that fact.

　Ultimately, the Emperor of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, who had been magnanimously composed, enacted a merciful decision accompanied by mockery.

　The envoy effectively concluded the ceasefire negotiations under conditions that could be interpreted as 'the surrender of the Free Democratic Alliance'.

　Incidentally, at the time of treaty signing after the conclusion of these ceasefire negotiations, the ownership of the two super-massive fortresses would officially be transferred from the Alliance side to the Empire side, but that is a story still a little in the future and does not affect the overall trend.

　Through such circumstances, a ceasefire was realized, and the long-standing war between the two nations finally headed towards its end.


　So what were Jin and Sangou doing after receiving the order to cease attack?

　Waiting for the next order, while still maintaining an attack posture, the reality was that the two had nothing in particular to do besides talk.

"Captain. That's a relief. It seems the war will end with the Empire's victory without you being forced to 'go on a solo suicide attack'"

"Yeah. That's a relief. Wait, I'm not a one-man army, you know? I'm not looking for that kind of thing, alright? Sangou, please stop raising flags?"

　Well, whether Sangou raises flags or not, the merciless reality comes regardless of such things.

　In short, something like the fateful power of Jin being a Hero works heavily, and that kind of opportunity will surely 'come' someday.

　He senses that vaguely, through the intuitive part of being a Hero.

　Therefore, as Jin, he has no choice but to believe in the word-spirit-like things he can actively utter, even if just as a comfort.

　At any rate, for such reasons, it was natural for Jin to resist part of Sangou's remarks, if only in words.

　Be that as it may, after waiting for over thirty days, the order that arrived for Sangou was 'return to the imperial capital'.

　However, even if the return order was issued, not all of the Imperial military that had sortied for the fortress offensive would withdraw.

　After the end of ceasefire negotiations, the Imperial military left part of its forces as an occupation force for the intact super-massive fortress and withdrew.

　After the Imperial military other than the occupation force and Sangou returned to the capital planet, a meritorious service award ceremony would be held in the imperial capital.


　As a result of the meritorious service award ceremony conducted in the course of such developments, Jin was once again promoted in rank.

　Thus, a 'Law-Robed Marquis', unprecedented in the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, was born.

　This is the realization of the future predicted earlier by Count Kaideron, but of course, it is the work of coincidence.

　Incidentally, the reason such a thing had no precedent, even though it would not have been surprising in form, was that ordinary Law-Robed Counts almost always served at the imperial court, and there had been no cases in the past where they performed deeds worthy of promotion.

　After all, it is normal for a person not only to be unable to be involved in cases where they could perform deeds warranting promotion multiple times in their lifetime, but to never have an opportunity even once.

　With this promotion, Jin's rank surpassed that of his father-in-law, Count Orega of Betasia.

　Therefore, Jin's work as a subordinate of his father-in-law in the Betasia Star System and his activities supporting the territorial military were ordered to cease by the Emperor.

　Since this is unavoidable under the Gialpha Galaxy Empire's system, both Jin and Orega had no choice but to accept it.

　Well, as compensation for Orega, Imperial military warships were sold to him at a low price.

　Also, for Jin, who had lost the reason to maintain a life base in the Betasia Star System, a residence in the imperial capital was prepared at imperial expense, and Marquis Asada was forced to move, changing his own residence in the Betasia Star System to a secondary residence.

　The realization of various matters in this regard, including Jin's promotion, was actually due to Laura working behind the scenes, and is the result of her applying various tangible and intangible pressures on her husband the Emperor and various quarters, for which Jin bears absolutely no responsibility whatsoever.

　Jin, who made no particular claims and went with the flow, was forced to take over the former Aleftoria Duke residence in the imperial capital that was temporarily owned by the imperial family.

　However, Jin does not know that this residence is the former Aleftoria Duke residence.

　Through this series of events, Laura's plan to keep Silk close to her was gradually realized.

　Incidentally, the territory of the former Aleftoria Duke family was inherited by the Fourth Prince establishing a new Dukedom.

　However, as one of the conditions for the Fourth Prince to establish the Zamalgart Dukedom, it was decided that he would take the current Emperor's sister into his household, which was kept as a secret matter known only to a small number of involved parties.

　The Imperial Princess matter, which had quietly been a lingering problem, was thus quietly brought to a close.


　As a result of the meritorious service award ceremony, Jin, who had lost his position as a 'military officer of the Betasia Count Household', found himself in a position with no official daily work at all.

　At this time, every day was like a holiday for Jin, so he submitted a direct request to His Majesty the Emperor and headed for the Betasia Star System for the move.

　Thus arriving at the main planet of the Betasia Star System, Jin landed Sangou on the sea as before.

　Sangou would remain floating on the sea surface, waiting.

　Next, using the twenty-meter class sub-unit, he headed home and landed directly at the residence.

　Since packing was completed due to prior contact, Rouju and the others immediately boarded the twenty-meter class unit.

　During that time, Jin made it look like he was putting luggage into Shadow Magic, while actually tossing it into Storage Space.

　Then, after saying farewell to the Count and Countess of Betasia, who had come to see them off, and to the butler Sutsan, and to the child who had been sent out for adoption, the twenty-meter class sub-unit carrying everyone quietly took off.

　Since Silk was pregnant, Sangou headed for the Gialpha Star System at a slower speed than usual.

　Was it a trivial matter that the pocket money received along the way increased because Sangou reduced her travel speed?

　The pocket money comes willingly on its own, or rather, the pocket money deliberately lingers in areas that would be detected by Sangou's sensors, so this is unavoidable.


"Hey, Sangou. Where did that baby dragon playing with my kids come from?"

　Jin asked Sangou, directing a gaze at the baby dragon as if looking at something suspicious.

"Yes. I had been continuing analysis of a stone-like object that came out of the dragon you gave me before, Captain. It changed into that this morning. It seems to understand our language and shows a submissive attitude. So I have it playing with the children."

"Huh?"

"The stone-like object changed into that today."

"No wait. I don't understand what you're saying, Sangou."

　Jin does not know the details, but in the world where the Louvre Empire, where he was a Hero, exists, there is something called 'conditions for monsters to be born'.

　Those conditions are that a substance that can become a core is exposed to high-concentration magic power for a long period.

　This easily occurs within labyrinths, and even outside labyrinths, it is a phenomenon that occurs fairly often in places where people do not live.

　Conversely, in places where people live, places with originally very dense magic power are rarely chosen, and since magic power present in that area is often used through the use of magic, it is difficult to maintain high concentration.

　Therefore, monsters are hard to be born in such places.

　Of course, the fact that monsters are not born in that place is a separate matter from monsters born in other places coming to such places.

　And now, Sangou is receiving Jin's magic power supply almost constantly.

　The fact that Sangou is 'conducting analysis' is a continuation of the phenomenon of 'touching a magic stone', which means it becomes the same as 'the magic stone was continuously exposed to high-concentration magic power'.

　In this case, since the core was a dragon's magic stone, the situation shifted to a baby dragon being born.

　Due to such circumstances, a baby dragon was suddenly born inside Sangou's ship.

　The dragon race, to which baby dragons belong, originally has high intelligence and sharp instincts.

　And since they are creatures that can instinctively sense differences in power, they immediately recognized Jin and Sangou, who possess vast magical power, as superiors from birth.

　Because of that, they do not attack those related to their superior Jin, and currently follow Sangou's instructions to play with the children.

　On Sangou's side as well, there was a flexible judgment that 'it is better to use it as an observation target while also utilizing it, rather than unconditionally killing a baby dragon that showed a willingness to obey without resistance'.

　As a result, the submissive baby dragon, showing no hostility or rebellious intent, is cute, and is under Sangou's strict surveillance, where even the slightest danger seems impossible to occur.

　Therefore, Jin accepted the existence of the baby dragon with a 'well, I suppose it's fine'.

　And Jin, who accepted the existence of the baby dragon as a pet, thought.

Is there a need to register owned pets in the Empire? I need to confirm that with Rouju or Silk. But if there is such a need, can you even register a dragon?

　While watching the playing baby dragon and children, Jin was thinking such fairly trivial things.

　　

　Through such circumstances, the Marquis Asada household headed leisurely towards the imperial capital, gaining a pet as a new family member.

I have to name the baby dragon. What should I call it?

　It was only a trivial matter that Jin's thoughts turned to that while following Sangou's instructions and tossing already-defeated pocket money materials into Storage Space.

　Sangou completed the voyage to the imperial capital without imposing any noticeable burden on the pregnant Silk's body.

　Thanks to the track record of contributions to the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, and also due to Laura's machinations, Sangou was finally permitted to descend directly into the capital planet's atmosphere.

　It was probably a trivial matter that personnel from the Imperial Technology Ministry stared intently at Sangou's descent and took data at that time.

　For a while after this, about five years of peaceful time passed for the members of the Marquis Asada household, who began living in their new residence, without any particularly notable incidents occurring.

　That completes the situation of Sangou at the beginning.

　Of course, Sangou had not been floating on the sea the entire time.

　What was Jin doing during these five years, sensing that His Majesty the Emperor seemed unlikely to issue any specific orders?

　The answer was sightseeing voyages, under the guise of 'field surveys', through the new parts of the ever-expanding imperial territory by the strongest duo of Jin and Sangou.

　They were doing pseudo-work that combined both their hobby and practical benefit.

　Of course, they occasionally returned to their home in the capital planet and rested.

　Jin was repeating such a cycle of life.

　Incidentally, due to earning pocket money on the side during this work, Jin's mercenary rank had risen to the rank of Upper-Upper, but that too might be a trivial matter that does not affect the overall trend.


　The following story is one where part of the results are already known from the situation at the beginning, but let us also touch on the transition of Alliance territory after the ceasefire.

　From the time a limited-term ceasefire was decided five years ago, after a brief period between the Empire and the Alliance, a peace treaty was ultimately signed.

　Due to the influence of the war that ended essentially with the Alliance's defeat, the Free Democratic Alliance President was dismissed by a national referendum, and the leaders of each star system within the Alliance faced a complete resignation en masse.

　The burden of reparations to the Empire weighed heavily on the Alliance's citizens, and although the burden on military spending was reduced due to disarmament, the total burden on individual citizens naturally increased considerably.

　In such circumstances, about a year after the war's end, something that could be called an 'incident' occurred in the election of the star system closest to the route to the Empire.

　What was that 'incident'?

　The content of the election pledge made by the person elected as leader in that star system's election.

　That was extremely problematic.

"We demand that our star system withdraw its affiliation from the Alliance, switch to the Empire, and in exchange for accepting the rule of nobles who will likely be dispatched from the Empire, have the burden of reparations canceled."

　What was continuously appealed to the populace during the election period as the content of the pledge was, surprisingly, the aforementioned.

　Incidentally, the burden on the citizens of this star system was fifty-fifty between public and private during wartime.

　However, after the war, it became an ultra-heavy tax of ninety public to ten private, and moreover, that was set to continue for a hundred years.

　The citizens gasping under heavy taxes were in a state of barely eating, and although armed suppression was carried out immediately, riots also occurred frequently.

　The act of clinging to the hope of escaping from that was reflected in the overwhelming election result.

　Then, after the election of the new leader, in order to realize the content of his pledged promise, a negotiation delegation was dispatched from that star system to the Empire.

　Upon receiving such a delegation, the Emperor of the Gialpha Galaxy Empire became conflicted.

They are abandoning the principles and claims that led them to war, for the sake of money?

　Although the Emperor inwardly mocked, he could not ignore the reality that many within the Empire wished to become territorial nobles.

　Therefore, he accepted the delegation's request.

　Thus, a corner of the Gialpha Galaxy Free Democratic Alliance crumbled through democratic procedures.

　With this star system as a precedent, from then on, one star system after another frequently followed suit, and now, five years after the ceasefire, the situation could be described as 'the Free Democratic Alliance has almost disappeared'.

　The field surveys, extremely close to sightseeing, that Jin and Sangou were conducting were of the former Alliance territory star systems newly added to the Empire's domain.


"In the place where I used to be, there were surprisingly many 'idiot nobles'. But these past few years, I haven't heard any bad stories about the counts who newly became territorial nobles. So I'm wondering: 'Are they just hiding it well?' or 'Are they actually ruling without problems?' What do you think about this? Rouju, Silk."

　Memories of the numerous misdeeds of nobles he saw in the Louvre Empire inevitably crossed Jin's mind.

"Um, I think that's only natural. For a count newly given a star system, initially it's like a trial period. If they fail in governing, they'll be immediately dispossessed."

　Rouju answered simply.

　Next, Silk spoke, adding information to that.

"That's right. Also, in this case, since the reparations are being canceled, the former Law-Robed Count who was assigned should be bearing—so to speak, paying out of pocket—for the shortfall caused by the cancellation, though not all of it. I doubt that His Majesty the Emperor or Lady Laura would choose someone foolish enough to do something stupid and waste that investment, having finally become a territorial count, don't you think? Even if they aren't thinking of 'recovering the full equivalent of the reparations for the Empire', it's only natural that they appoint someone who seems capable of generating stable long-term profits."

　This is correct in Silk's view, and the 'merit of expanding territory' is something that cannot be ignored.

　Therefore, for the Gialpha Galaxy Empire, it is fine if full recovery is not achieved.

　Silk's remarks can be said to show 'insight worthy of someone who received education as a Crown Princess'.

"I see. So at least the first generation usually won't go rotten. That clears up a nagging doubt I had! Because whenever I went on a field survey to any star system, the people always said things like 'We have a good count, we're happy.' I even suspected 'Are they being brainwashed?'"

　As a former Japanese person, Jin thinks that 'democracy is neither 'omnipotent' nor 'supreme''.

　But still, 'in terms of preference, I lean more towards democratic politics than autocratic politics'.

　So, inadvertently.

　During his field surveys, Jin secretly cast spells of curse removal and abnormal status recovery, making sure not to be noticed.

　Though it was meaningless.

　That aside, there is also a somewhat darker side to the background circumstances not mentioned in Silk's remarks.

　When it comes to the second generation and later heads, a certain percentage naturally become arrogant and screw up.

　If such individuals can be exposed and dispossessed, the territory can be given to someone else as a reward.

　Therefore, neither the Gialpha Galaxy Empire nor the Emperor are troubled by the 'phenomenon of foolish second-generation and later appearing'.

　However, in such cases, the people of that star system would temporarily suffer.

　Perhaps for Jin, who is unaware of such stark hidden circumstances, the good-natured part from when he lived in Japan is reviving through living with Rouju and the others.

　In peaceful times, the conversation between the couple, with no shortage of topics, continues.

"By the way, has Nobunaga's marriage partner been decided?"

　Nobunaga is the name of the first son born to Rouju.

　That the circumstances at the time of naming were Jin borrowing a name from a historical figure in Japan on a whim is one of the secrets the Hero will take to his grave.

　There is absolutely no intention of having his child aim to become a Demon Lord.

　As an aside, there is no plan to teach him Atsumori.

"Yes. It was quite contentious whether it would be the Eighth Princess or the Crown Prince's eldest daughter, but it has been decided that the 'Eighth Princess will marry down'. Since Nobunaga is a bit unreliable in some ways, wouldn't it be just right for him to have a wife three years older?"

　Nobunaga, an elf, will marry a human princess.

　The issue here might be the difference in lifespan between the races.

　Rouju's lack of concern about her son's partner is, simply put, because 'his partner will definitely pass away first'.

　Incidentally, in this world, children are always born as the mother's race, so there are no half-breeds in a racial sense.

　Why is that?

　Regarding that, no matter how much scholars in this world research, it is a problem that yields no answer.

　This is a phenomenon that can only be thought of as 'that's how the world works', and might be something that must be accepted as reality.

"I see. Well, I'm glad it ended up being the Crown Prince's daughter instead of having a fiancée decided right after birth?"

"I don't really understand that part."

　Unfortunately, Jin's view is mistaken.

　Sending a daughter to Nobunaga is a competition between the current Emperor and the next Emperor over means to strengthen their relationship with Jin, and from the Crown Prince's side, it even means 'solidifying the seat of the next Emperor'.

　Regarding this matter, Jin's prediction was off the mark.

　That aside, for now.

　At present, Jin has five children besides Nobunaga.

　The second child, second daughter Chacha, born to Rouju.

　The second child, fourth daughter Gou, born to Rinju.

　The first child, eldest daughter Ichi, and the second child, second son Nobuyuki, born to Ranju.

　The first child, third daughter Hatsu, born to Silk.

　As for the child born to Rinju that was put up for adoption, it is already, on paper, a child of the Betasia Count Household, so it is not included here.

　Also, as an aside, the name of the baby dragon (female) is Kichou.

　All naming of the children was done by Jin under the authority of the household head.

　It might be a naming that fully reveals his history otaku nature, but there is no one around Jin who can criticize it.

　Since it is a world where races are not only human, there are various names.

　Therefore, the names Jin gave were not particularly problematic.

　That aside, with the engagement of the eldest son decided, engagements for the other children will likely be decided in order hereafter.

　Especially regarding Hatsu, Silk's child, Laura has naturally locked on, but it would be fortunate that Jin does not know that at this point.

　Of course, Silk is aware.

　Even the Hero Jin has such peaceful time with his family.

　However, the fateful power of a Hero sometimes destroys such time.

　It is also likely true that a Hero, for some reason, attracts one rare case after another.

　Having roughly finished sightseeing the Empire's new territories, Jin extended his travels to the undeveloped regions of the former Alliance territory due to a request from Sangou to supplement the star chart data of the Gialpha Galaxy.

　Then, when they reached an area with a certain planet in a certain star system, Sangou detected a relatively large life reaction, thought to be about human size, and an even larger life reaction thought to be pursuing it, and reported this to the Captain, Jin.

　Thus, the Hero Jin and Sangou ended the fortress offensive operation without fighting the second super-massive fortress as ordered by His Majesty the Emperor.

　Promotion to Marquis and the house where Silk used to live were given as rewards for the war against the Alliance.

　Silk was honestly happy to return to her former home, but Jin, given that the marriage of his eldest son to an imperial princess had been decided, could not help but feel he had definitely been tangled up by the Gialpha Galaxy Empire.

　Well, when he weighed that against being able to have a family with four beautiful women and his children, from Jin's perspective, not only did the scales balance, but he seemed likely to get change back.

　A child of the dragon race, supposed to be a monster, joined the family as a pet, and the future of the Asada household is bright.

　The engagement of the eldest son being decided means marriage offers for the other children will certainly flood in, which is troublesome, but with his elevated rank and powerful backing, it is also easy to refuse if he does not like them, so there is a relaxed side to it.

　Since no problems arise even if he leaves household matters to Rouju and Silk, when he engages in activities where the boundary between hobby and work is unclear, is it the work of the fateful power a Hero possesses that he ends up encountering scenes where incidents occur?

　Though no one knows the future.

　The Hero-sama felt dissatisfied about the flow of events where he received promotion and a former duke's residence in a prime location of the imperial capital as a reward for 'merit in defeating a super-massive fortress', even though he had almost only watched Sangou's exploits and felt he had not done any proper work himself.

　Even without knowing that the Emperor was mocking the process of the Alliance's self-destructive collapse, Jin thought, "Losing your country in a war you started yourself? Are you idiots?" and upon hearing that the people of the former Alliance territory, who had hated autocratic rule but accepted noble governance, were saying "Life has become easier and the good ruler makes us happy," he was surprised and muttered, "It's not that democracy is bad, but there are cases like this too."