152 - Fines Walt
It was the room of the Sixth's memories.
Having received training from him, once I was declared to have passed, I was shown the memories of the Sixth.
A woman—the Sixth's half-sister—was sobbing, clinging to her biological mother.
When she saw the Fifth—Fredricks—she looked down and began to cry even harder.
The Sixth in the memory—Fines—spoke.
"Father, she's been through a hard time. Leave her be."
Fines was the older brother protecting his sister, but Fredricks was different. Looking at his sobbing daughter, he spoke to the woman's mother, who was his concubine.
"...I'm taking her back. Prepare everything."
Then, the woman spoke.
"...It's because you married me off to a place like that! I was treated like an object... just because I'm the daughter of a house with nothing but a bloodline!"
As the woman showered Fredricks with abuse, her biological mother hugged her and led her out of the room.
Then, perhaps unable to endure it any longer, Fines grabbed Fredricks by the collar.
"Are beasts more important than your own children?! Your daughter was treated like that, and you're not even angry, you!"
At that, Fredricks smiled slightly.
He then threw Fines off and pinned him to the floor. The person who rushed into the room was Fines's mother, the legal wife.
"Fines!"
Seeing her child pinned to the floor, Fines's mother panicked. Then, Fredricks muttered softly.
"That's it, you're fine just like that... you pass."
Saying that, he released Fines and shouted loudly.
"Prepare the armaments. Send out the fast horses! Fines, you're coming out too. No... you stand at the front."
Seeing his father's smiling face, Fines looked surprised.
As Fredricks left the room, the vassals were gathered in front of it. As he barked out orders one after another, the vassals began to move in a great flurry.
Yet, they seemed somehow happy.
As Fines was helped up by his biological mother, he looked at his father's happy expression and muttered.
"What is this? That blunt father of mine..."
Then, Fines's biological mother spoke.
"I heard he used to be a man who laughed often. He was kind. Haven't you heard that from your grandmother?"
Fines replied.
"...I heard, but I thought it was a lie."
Saying so, Fines pulled away from his mother and left the room.
Watching this, the Sixth rested his hand on his chin. He looked happy, and nostalgic.
The scene changed.
It was outdoors.
In the center of the settlement was a town enclosed by walls made of logs. Fields stretched out, and a river flowed. However, it was not a peaceful sight.
Knights were on horseback, and soldiers were walking in formation.
The equipment and the numbers—it looked as though there were specific rules. They carried banners and were aiming to converge at a single point, walking through the settlement as an armed group.
"What is this? Normally, if you did this much, there would be some resistance!"
Then, the Sixth laughed. He laughed loudly and pointed toward a certain place.
"What if resistance is meaningless?"
Looking back, knights and soldiers were continuing to arrive from the rear. They weren't just gathering from that one road.
They were gathering from the surroundings, heading toward the town.
The Sixth spoke nostalgically.
"Our father devised the Walt family's military laws. But to execute them, it was necessary to station people who had learned those laws in various locations. We couldn't just teach them regardless of whether they were friend or foe. That's why we were needed... to station us, who had been educated and trained, in various places. He told us to teach our daughters and to make sure they passed it on to their children."
"He did something like that?"
"Yeah. But at the time, I thought every house was doing it."
I wondered if it had been necessary to go that far. In the Seventh's era, it must have expanded even further.
"The number of soldiers, weapons, messengers, military discipline... the elites who followed those were established around this time."
That was likely why the equipment showed regularity.
Then, the Sixth said.
"Look. The soldiers watching from the walls are panicking, right? Because they were scraped together in a great hurry!"
Partly because it was within the territory, but the fact that he could put such a number into motion so quickly meant that the Fifth had created that situation.
Perhaps because he had been tormented by the surrounding lords to that extent, he felt the necessity.
Looking toward the town, a messenger for negotiations rushed out in a panic.
The scenery changed to the inside of a tent where Fredricks and Fines were. There were men clad in armaments.
The messenger, face pale, looked at Fredricks, who was sitting in a chair.
Next to Fredricks was a woman who was not dressed like a village girl. Accompanied by her biological mother, she sat with her head down.
Seeing this, a brother who shared the same mother stood up and tried to punch the messenger. The other brothers around him stopped him.
"Let go! You heard what these bastards did to my sister! I'll chop his head off right here and give that as an answer!"
To the rampaging brother, Fines spoke.
"Don't kill the messenger! That's our rule. Killing happens on the battlefield or after."
The messenger's face was pale.
"Viscount! We swore to enter your protection! This treatment is too much!"
Then, Fredricks turned his gaze toward the daughter looking down beside him.
"...Tell the messenger there what was done to you. Your family will take care of everything afterward."
Then, the woman began to speak in fragments while still looking down.
"...That once I gave birth to a boy, the rest were unnecessary..."
The messenger, face pale, tried to clear up the misunderstanding.
"T-That's not it! When teaching the rules of our house, I may have said it a bit too strongly, but that was to teach strictly—"
Under the sharp gazes of those around him, the messenger fell silent, and the woman spoke again. Behind the brothers were other nobles who were dependents.
"...That the furniture my mother gave me, how many gold coins was it worth... that it was an unreliable house of poor people..."
Watching the woman wipe her tears with her hand as she cried, the reactions of those around her turned cold. Then, Fredricks began to laugh.
"I see, so I'm a poor noble! Sorry about that. I had so many children I couldn't spend much money on them. And?"
The messenger sent a gaze toward the woman, and tears were flowing from his eyes. Perhaps he was regretting what he had done until now.
"...That the people of the Walt family are slaves. That since you'll just betray us and loot again anyway, I only need to pass on the noble blood. Just like that, my son was taken away... I've never even held him properly!"
Hearing that, the inside of the tent became murderous. A dependent from the neighborhood stood up and shouted at the messenger.
"So that was your intention! While telling us to let past grudges wash away because we share the same protector... Viscount! Please leave the vanguard to my house! As a house that also welcomed a daughter of the Viscount, we cannot forgive such people!"
Then, Fines's brothers spoke.
"Treating our sister like a slave? Don't screw with us! Go back and tell them to prepare for war! This is why I didn't want to make a house like this a dependent! Go flatter some declining Baron!"
The Sixth was laughing, and I, unable to grasp the situation, tilted my head.
"Declining? Um, what happened?"
"Hm? Ah, during this period, the neighboring Baron's house was in decline. Well, they had been rampaging all over the Walt family's territory. See, the Fifth calmly crushed the bandits who entered and smashed the mercenary groups. I heard he took some quite cruel measures, but when that happened to the Baron's house that came to loot... the knights were killed, they couldn't loot, and they lost their horses and equipment! Moreover, they kept losing and lost their credibility!"
Hearing that, I understood somehow. The Fifth had endured it.
He crushed the invading bandits and smashed the mercenary groups and dependents of other houses that came to loot. In that case, from the opponent's perspective, the Walt family would be a troublesome existence.
"Well, even though they're from the same country, repeating looting really shows a lack of credibility."
But the Sixth said.
"It's actually quite common. On the contrary, we focused on internal affairs, and we increased our allies through our marriage diplomacy. It's true noble blood. Everyone wanted it."
Magic users. The noble blood called that was something many houses didn't have, even among nobles. That's probably what the Fifth utilized.
The messenger desperately repeated his excuses, but the tide had already turned.
Fredricks stood up.
"Enough. Go back and tell them. To prepare their armaments."
The messenger collapsed on the spot and pleaded for help from the crying woman.
"Please help me! At this rate, our territory will be wiped out! We will never repeat such things again! Therefore, I beg you!"
And then, Fredricks—.
"Then return the grandson. We will educate him here. Also, I'll have the head of the house handed over. I'll have the corpse displayed."
After that, it was announced that the houses of the primary vassals would be dismantled for overlooking the current situation.
"...Did you find this acceptable?"
The Sixth replied.
"Of course I didn't. But it was easy."
Then, the image showed a burning town. The mansion in the center of the town was burning, and a baby was held in the woman's arms.
"...Even though the surroundings aren't burning."
Looking around, only the mansion was on fire. And on the ground, the corpses of knights and soldiers were scattered.
According to the Sixth.
"When the messenger returned and explained the situation, preparations for war began. But the people did not follow. It was an army numbering in the ten thousands. They were surrounded and in a state of panic. Well, this was the signal fire for when the Walt family went on the offensive."
In this way, he said he made the dependents realize what happens when you oppose the Walt family.
After this, the reactions of the dependents were apparently different.
Fredricks approached Fines, who was watching the burning mansion.
And then—.
"Remember this. This isn't someone else's problem. If you make even a slight error in judgment, this is the future of the Walt family."
When Fines looked back, Fredricks handed him a blue orb.
"F-Father."
"My job ends here. You take over the rest. I'm retiring. I'm tired... I'll leave the rest to you."
Saying so, the Fifth, with a tired smile, walked away from the spot.
The image turned gray, and as time stopped, the Sixth spoke.
"Surrounded by enemies, not knowing who around us was friend or foe. The only ones we could rely on... let's see, was it only the Foxus family? A father like that managed to create a form in our generation. Though even now, I don't want to admit that his way was correct."
The Fifth had many children. But at the same time, that presented a big problem. Conflict between family members, in other words, between brothers.
"The Fifth, perhaps... made it so the family's hostility was directed at himself."
It seemed to me that he united the family by ensuring the hostility was directed at him rather than the Sixth, who would inherit the house.
"To be honest, I don't know. I didn't hear it, but maybe that's how it was? He'd never say it. Well, there were certainly many brotherly quarrels, but it never went as far as killing each other. Whenever something happened, we gathered like this and fought the enemy. There are many things I heard from my mothers later on. Thinking about it afterward, I couldn't deny everything."
The surrounding scenery disappeared, and the garden of the mansion came into view. The Sixth crossed his arms and spoke to me.
"I, Liel... just moved the army the Fifth prepared. The reason I fought and won against the surrounding people was because the Fifth had prepared everything. The preparations for victory were complete, and I won because I was meant to win. That's all."
The Sixth greatly expanded the Walt family's controlled territory. But he told me that it was because of the foundation the Fifth had laid.
I said to the Sixth.
"That's not true. The Sixth is strong too, and you're reliable."
When I said that, the Sixth, who looked back, was smiling. He smiled, and then—.
"I wish that were true. I failed in various ways and caused trouble for Broad. That's why he kept his distance from me."
I had thought the relationship between the Sixth and the Seventh was good. But just like the previous heads, there must have been something, even if it didn't show on the surface.
After letting out a deep sigh, the Sixth looked at my face seriously.
"Liel, I'll teach you a skill. ...[Real Spec]. This is my third skill. You'll be able to obtain more information than ever before."
From what I heard, it seemed I could know in even more detail what state the opponent was in. But what I thought was more than the skill itself.
"Why... it doesn't have to be right now."
Hearing my pleading voice, the Sixth shook his head. Being taught the final skill—the Sixth's third—the final stage skill, meant a parting.
"No, it's because it's now. This is as much as I can do for you. The rest of them will support you. They're more reliable than I am."
"Nothing is over yet. It's only just begun. Besides, I rely on the Sixth too!"
The Sixth scratched his cheek with his fingertip. He gave a bitter smile.
"No, it's already over. If you can't win with this, then that's your limit. But I believe you will win. This is enough. No, if it's not here, I feel like I'll stay behind forever. It doesn't feel bad to be held back. But, Liel... our purpose is to entrust the skills to you. That took a little... no, a lot longer than expected. Try using my skill. You'll just want to know more about how to use it."
As told, I tried using the skill. The amount of information was on a different level from Search or Spec.
"It's fine to use it simultaneously with the Fifth's skill, but this one is amazing on its own. Well, the amount of information is too much, so it's hard to master."
When I used the skill, I pressed my head with my left hand due to the rapidly increasing amount of information.
The Sixth watched with a smile.
"You can't use it for very long, but it's convenient in various ways. Well, since it's you, I'm sure you can master it. Now I have no regrets."
I tried to say something, but at the same time—I remembered the regrets from the times of the First and Second. I had shown the First a pathetic side until the end.
With the Second, I had refused and couldn't say a proper goodbye.
I forced a smile.
"Th-Thank you very much. I think the Sixth is an amazing person. I mean, there are some bad parts, but... you taught me so many things!"
The Sixth smiled gently.
"I actually wanted to teach you more. Alcohol, and gambling... bad habits too! Well, I also had fun teaching Liel various things. By the way, I'm counting on you for Miranda and Shannon. Make them happy."
"Is that all you've got until the end? I know. I'll do everything I can."
The Sixth joked. I played along.
And then, as the surrounding scenery turned into particles of light and disappeared, the Sixth scratched his head.
"Ah~, actually, that's a lie. I actually have one regret."
He said that. He was smiling, but he looked a bit lonely.
"What is it?"
The Sixth placed his hand on my shoulder.
"That I won't be able to see you in your glory. I wanted to see you decorating your first battle, swinging a halberd on horseback. No, that's not it... I also wanted to see you standing up to Celes. Honestly, even though I'm just teaching a skill, I can't help but want to look after you."
"Then why don't you just stay and watch a bit longer?"
When I spoke my feelings, the Sixth shook his head.
"I told you. Then I wouldn't know when to entrust the skills. ...Hold your head high, Liel. You can do it. In my life full of failures, you're one of the few things I'm proud of. I'm the one who wants to say thank you."
As I opened my mouth, the Sixth's figure began to disappear.
"Liel, thank you... and, I believe that you can do it."
"Me too... I'm proud of the Sixth too! You're my proud ancestor!"
Whether my words reached him or not—the Sixth smiled and vanished.
When I woke up, tears spilled over.
Touching my cheek, it seemed I really had been crying.
"Even though I tried to endure it. I really am no good... I bet he saw me crying."
As I sat up and muttered that, a voice came from the orb placed on a stand beside the bed.
It was the Fifth.
"...It's fine. It's not like I'm angry."
The Seventh thanked me.
"I'll say my thanks, Liel. I kept some distance from the Sixth. Even when he recommended the halberd, I refused. Even now, I sometimes remember my father's lonely expression at that time. When he was teaching you, he looked truly happy. Thank you, Liel."
I looked at Miranda sleeping in the next bed. It was still dark outside the window.
(I have no time to stand still. But, just for now)
There was regret inside me. That I should have let the Sixth teach me more things. That I should have talked with him more.
Come to think of it—.
(Come to think of it, the Sixth was on my side from the start. He gave me follow-up support and such. I'll be lonely again)
Taking the orb in my hand, I squeezed it tight.