Ch.298Epilogue-End

Exactly eight years after its founding, the Duchy of Alzar establishing itself as an independent nation was… remarkably met with indifference from everyone.

To be fair, looking at the event itself, it was certainly a significant development, but it was overshadowed by various other incidents erupting everywhere.

What began as sporadic skirmishes between the Holy Empire and the Frankish Kingdom gradually intensified until they openly engaged in full-scale warfare, attacking each other with deadly intent.

The Imperial Hippogriff Knights clashed head-on with the Kingdom’s Unicorn Knights in a direct show of force, while the Holy Empire’s infantry formations unleashed devastating firepower against the Kingdom’s heavy cavalry, successfully repelling them.

Particularly noteworthy was the firepower of the newly introduced breech-loading rifled guns being distributed among the Holy Empire’s elite units, which not only repelled but decimated the plate-armored cavalry, resulting in an impressive 80% casualty rate.

This signified that firearms, which had been somewhat secondary until now, were demonstrating meaningful deterrence against cavalry, traditionally the hammer of armies, indicating that the paradigm was gradually shifting toward gunpowder weapons.

In truth, it’s only because of the existence of magical power that heavy cavalry remains relevant; otherwise, with the dramatic improvement in infantry firepower since the introduction of guns, heavy cavalry would have become obsolete long ago.

Of course, cavalry, especially mid-level knights, still remain a powerful force… but ordinary heavy cavalry units equipped with plate armor charging enemy lines are approaching obsolescence.

And so, amid this atmosphere where gunpowder weapons are rising to prominence and the political situation is becoming increasingly unstable.

The small kingdoms of the south, which had been restraining each other, finally erupted with a bang, waging terrible wars against one another with the ferocity of extinction battles despite their small size.

Given that different kingdoms often have different dominant races, centuries-old blood feuds are common, and a culture of vendetta-style revenge is established in the region, the fact that they had stopped fighting for even a few years was itself a miracle.

They fought madly against each other, pouring everything they had into the conflict and sparing no resources, naturally drawing in military supplies from all directions.

…Thanks to this, our weapons exports have become a boon, creating a situation worth competing for.

And in the midst of this intense conflict, we declared neutrality and held our ground without being drawn into the war.

The declaration of Alzar’s independence, from the perspective of eliminating variables, was something neither side had reason to reject, especially since our kingdom is famous for selling cold weapons that still retain their value despite the coming age of firearms.

No matter how superior firearms may be as weapons, gunpowder weapons are extremely expensive, and the southern kingdoms with their relatively weaker economies simply cannot afford them.

Of course, the wealthy coastal nations can equip their elite forces with appropriate gear, but from the perspective of those who wield magical power, firearms are not completely insurmountable.

Thus, in an atmosphere where cold weapons are still valid military armaments, the Duchy has been able to maintain its neutrality by leveraging our unique position.

Normally, in situations of opposing factions, neutral parties are often the first to be attacked, so such an outright declaration of neutrality would typically have a high probability of causing problems somewhere.

Nevertheless, our neutral stance has remained surprisingly firm, and the biggest reason for this is undoubtedly that we are major exporters of military supplies.

As mentioned earlier, not only do we export cold weapons, but we also supply various foodstuffs using increased crop yields thanks to the four-field crop rotation system and Mother’s Blessing.

How cheap are our domestic food prices? Even with the general price increase due to the war, it’s only about 20%.

So we leverage this by exporting at low prices while using this affordability as a weapon, threatening to supply resources to only one side.

The war, which has continued for about five months now, has promoted all kinds of consumption and expenditure, resulting in effects that have shaken the finances and prices of each country.

In this atmosphere, suppliers who can avoid being swept up in the madness of war are enthusiastically enjoying the war boom, creating an ideal situation.

Naturally, our Duchy of Alzar, the greatest beneficiary of this war boom, reveled in prosperity amid the flood of incoming funds.

Flour, which was already in high demand, sold out as soon as it hit the international market, and both warring nations were desperately trying to secure supply contracts—

—Thud!

“Daddyyyyy!!!”

My thoughts were interrupted by the sudden opening of the door. With a familiar heartbeat, the door swung open, and a small boy who called me daddy came running in…

“Little Hugo, you’re here?”

“Yes! Daddy!”

Hugo de Alzar, or perhaps Hugo Alzar Junior as he should be called, my eldest son, came running on his short legs in such an adorable way that I couldn’t help but smile fondly as I ruffled his hair when he approached my desk.

Hugo de Alzar Junior. This small child born between Hannah and me, with wolf ears.

This werewolf-hybrid child, who recently turned four years old not long ago, is both my first child and one who has brought new winds to our duchy.

That is, when it was revealed that the future Duke would be a hybrid of a non-human race, immigrants of that lineage began to arrive.

Sentient beings fundamentally seek to boost their self-esteem by looking down on others for having even one advantage, so how could such creatures not engage in racial discrimination?

Particularly, the main targets of such racial discrimination are beast-kin living in the Frankish Kingdom, where the human population exceeds 95%, making it nearly a single-race nation.

The future ruler is likely to be a hybrid with wolf beast-kin blood (though werewolves aren’t technically beast-kin), and the Duchy of Alzar is virtually the only safe country amid the renewed conflicts sweeping the western continent.

As a result, not just wolf beast-kin but also werewolves who had been living in hiding, along with various other beast-kin races, have joined us, providing significant strength.

From the perspective of needing to increase our size and population to at least a million, having a population group with physical abilities superior to humans join us is difficult to view negatively as a ruler.

And…

“Daddy, Daddy! So, you know…”

As Hugo Junior, now standing on my lap and carefully explaining everything that had happened, with me stroking his gray hair while avoiding his twitching ears, at that very moment.

“…Hugo, isn’t it your etiquette lesson time right now?”

After carefully voicing the question that suddenly occurred to me. Looking at the mischievous appearance of someone who had clearly skipped his manners and etiquette lessons, I sighed softly, grabbed the back of his neck, lifted him with my hand, and…

“No snacks for a week.”

“Ah, Daddy…!!”

After I declared this with an unyielding attitude, he looked at me desperately, as if he had lost a lover.

Of course, it was clear that there would be no changing my mind.

“Hugo. Didn’t I tell you last time that if you did this one more time, I would take away your snacks for a week?”

“…Yes, you did.”

“That’s right. And you clearly promised too, didn’t you?”

“…Yes.”

“Then do you have any complaints?”

“…No.”

Having decided to refrain from corporal punishment, which is actually not very effective in child education, I maintained a firm attitude, believing this was the best approach if I didn’t want to see him grow into an unruly rascal.

In fact, the clever Hugo showed a purely apologetic attitude rather than arguing, so I quietly slipped him a prepared snack (candy) and gently stroked his head…

“…Dear?”

“Ah, Gretel. Welcome. Hugo is here.”

As I handed Hugo over to my second wife, the pregnant Gretel who had come looking for him to scold him, I smiled awkwardly.

It seems Hugo is about to get a proper scolding.

※ ※ ※

Even as peaceful daily life continues, anxieties remain.

For example, succession disputes. While we are looking for an individual with the power of immortality, if we cannot find one, we may have to witness bloodline relatives killing each other.

Or international relations. The international community may not always accept our claims of neutrality, and as arms dealers with a reputation that easily accumulates infamy, caution is required.

To put it bluntly, after this war ends, whichever side gains dominance might suppress us and demand our submission again.

But despite these anxieties… at least for now, the world remains intact.

Therefore, I will simply fulfill my duties as both a national ruler and a father of a… family—

“—Dear, it’s an emergency!”

“…Darling? No. Chancellor Charlotte, what brings you here…?”

“Vampire Lord Alliance has emerged in the eastern part of the Holy Continent! Numbering at least 12! Led by a demigod-level entity! They’ve declared an empire and begun invasions on all fronts! So the Kingdom and Empire are cooperating—”

…It seems that hardships and incidents are inseparable from my life.

-The End-