Ch.220220. Gifts and Answers (4)

A short while after Minerva and Sophia had left.

‘….Ah.’

For some time, I had been managing the estate and sorting through incoming gifts, and during that time, I felt a strange emotion about the endless stream of various “news” that kept coming in.

That is, to borrow Sophia’s expression, rumors about how she personally dealt with “thieving cats who dared to wag their tails at me.”

She killed or maimed those who “dared” to propose marriage as a form of political maneuvering without regard for circumstances, and she personally visited the vixens who sent love letters to men who were already taken, “appropriately punishing” them to firmly establish her authority.

Unlike me, who at least pretends to be reluctant about killing due to remnants of my modern sensibilities, I feel to the bone that Sophia can be even more cruel and cold-blooded in these matters than I am.

Especially considering the news that four lords were slaughtered by Sophia’s hand and seven nobles were maimed.

Ah, of course, one might wonder.

It’s a reasonable doubt—whether there could really be no repercussions after killing lords who essentially ruled over what could be considered small kingdoms or city-states.

Considering that each territory in the Frankish Kingdom exercises virtually the same level of autonomy as an independent state, this is indeed a reasonable doubt that might naturally arise.

And to cut to the conclusion, I consider this to be an outrage permitted to the upper ranks.

More precisely, as long as there’s justification, those of the upper rank can get away with almost anything.

An upper rank is an individual but not just an individual. Even the weakest upper rank wields power that appears godlike to ordinary people, and furthermore, they are “strategic” beings who can directly intervene in world affairs and political landscapes.

For the simple reason that only another upper rank can challenge an upper rank, every upper rank is like an asymmetric force—if I were to compare it to a real-world weapon, they’re like a super-large battleship equipped with a main gun capable of firing nuclear shells.

At first, it seems like too overwhelming a comparison for a mere individual, but once you experience the combat power of an upper rank, you come to find it somewhat understandable.

Right now, a properly trained ordinary middle-rank warrior is considered almost equal to “1,000 infantry” on the battlefield, and these are, so to speak, human-sized biological tanks that lower ranks have no way of confronting, with few exceptions.

And even if dozens or hundreds of these middle ranks gather, objectively speaking, they would still struggle to defeat a single upper rank.

If middle ranks are tanks, then upper ranks are battleships. And despite being only as large as a human, they’re essentially super battleships that can think and move on their own.

It’s not for nothing that each upper rank is compared to a nuclear weapon, and consequently, the treatment they receive in society is beyond imagination.

As long as there’s proper justification, any illegal act is permissible. As long as they don’t cross certain minimal lines, they can negotiate deals where transgressions are covered up with appropriate flexibility.

It’s a kind of extralegal authority—for an upper rank, almost everything is legal as long as the benefit of keeping someone alive doesn’t outweigh killing them.

It’s equivalent to an individual being given nation-level power…. frankly speaking, it’s power and authority somewhat excessive for a single individual to wield.

Of course, if an upper rank wishes to live as part of society, certain constraints inevitably exist, but the benefits that far exceed these constraints have been the greatest driving force maintaining human society thus far.

….No matter how strong upper ranks are or how transcendent their power is, they still can’t farm or do menial tasks themselves.

To be blunt, most upper ranks could destroy a decent-sized nation using only their personal power, but rather than indulging in such power-drunk rampages, it’s more efficient for them to reign using their authority and military might.

With the justification of maintaining the social infrastructure that can be utilized through the power and strength inevitably accompanying upper ranks, humanity has somehow managed to maintain society without being completely dominated by these tyrants called upper ranks….

Frankly speaking, such upper ranks can cover up most incidents at their level as long as they don’t make too much of a mess.

Whether they go around killing a few lords or massacring their relatives, as long as they have clear justification and don’t leave loose ends, they won’t face punishment or even criticism.

Of course, if they really cause an incident, even upper ranks won’t be safe.

In the entire Western Continent, there are… though quite a few hide their status, probably not even 100 upper-rank humans, but conversely, this means there are superhuman individuals capable of confronting nations existing in the hundreds.

Additionally, most major powers have at least five upper ranks affiliated with them, so if someone causes trouble, it’s not difficult to subjugate them.

It’s just that the damage an upper rank can accumulate in the world before being subjugated is beyond imagination, and suppressing upper ranks makes other upper ranks anxious, which cannot be denied.

To be frank, the current society is maintained in this distorted form because upper ranks believe this is the right way to maintain it.

So, as I was contemplating such authority as an upper rank while fiddling with some items that had been given as gifts.

-*Ding-a-ling.*

“I’m back, Gregory.”

“Sophie! Did you handle everything well?”

“Yes. I made an example of them.”

With the bell sound that rang as the door opened, Sophia entered, giving me a bewitching smile as she approached, took my hand, and wiggled her fingers.

….Truly, it was impossible not to be happy.

※ ※ ※

After Sophia returned to Tarasque’s house, which had become our estate. We spent some truly peaceful and comfortable days.

Thanks to completely eliminating those who crossed the line this time, there would be no one to pick fights with us for a while, and in addition, we couldn’t ignore the gift offensive that continued to arrive, though it had cooled down somewhat.

Although the frequency and rate of incoming gifts had decreased by more than half after this incident, considering the circumstances, this was actually the normal situation.

It’s just that until now, an abnormally large number of gifts had been delivered, so I can’t deny that even this reduced amount is still quite substantial.

Also, mixed among these gifts were letters, which, naturally, were completely different from those rude marriage proposals from before…. they were recruitment proposals or social gathering invitations with sufficient formality and courtesy.

These recruitment proposals, mainly delivered from small countries or city-states without upper ranks, were almost desperate pleas, except for the fact that there was almost no reason to accept them.

In this world’s international society, the status of an upper rank is almost the same as modern nuclear weapons, so even the smallest weak nation can have a stronger voice if they have just one upper rank.

Especially in the southern part of the Western Continent…. what would be the Iberian Peninsula in the real world, this region is a chaotic mess with dozens of small powers vying for control, so they’re desperately moving to aim for unification if they can center around even one upper-rank force.

For them, such an approach is literally a matter of survival rights, which is why they’re reaching out like this.

Of course, I had no particular desire to be affiliated with or elevated by anyone, so I rejected all these proposals.

Meanwhile, I decided to simply ignore the social gathering invitations without a moment’s hesitation.

From those that seemed intent on trying to incorporate me into their faction at first glance, to large social gatherings that invited people regardless of faction, without any apparent ulterior motives or purposes.

Of course, one might say that building appropriate social relationships is a noble’s duty, but….

To be frank, I’m not even a noble.

I’m merely referred to as a quasi-noble (with a position equivalent to nobility) according to the kingdom’s laws, and while I’ve recently become involved in politics more than necessary, I’m originally in a position similar to a monk who has left the secular world.

Since I’m trying to keep some distance from politics anyway, it’s right to not pay attention to these trivial social gatherings or meetings.

“….Hmm hmm hmm~.”

-Rustle, rustle.

Anyway, as the two of us, having dealt with all those letters, were enjoying our recently acquired hobby of crafting together in Tarasque’s living room.

-Knock knock knock.

“….?”

Feeling puzzled by the sound of the alarm magic announcing a visitor, I extended my vision to see the point that the alarm magic was indicating….

‘….Tax collector?’

What existed there was none other than a tax collector who had appeared leading the kingdom’s soldiers and knights.