CH 287.1

From the middle of the wide road connecting the Imperial Capital and the Spirit Forest, narrow road branches off to the west. A group of Imperial Knights walked westward on that road.

「I apologize that it’s so cramped here, Your Majesty」

Says the small woman piloting the A-class Knight. She has drowsy eyes and looks like in her twenties.

She is in the cockpit, but the place she is sitting is the emperor’s lap.

『A place that can withstand being hit by fire arrows for a long period of time』

This is because the answer to this proposition was the cockpit of an A-class Knight.

However, the emperor does not have the ability to operate golems, and even if he sits down, the auxiliary magic circles that handle heat and smoke don’t work.

As a result, the smallest A-class pilot in the Imperial Army was chosen to accompany him.

「No problem, you don’t need to worry about it. It must be difficult for you too in that posture」

What the emperor pointed out was her back that was slumped forward. She was probably trying to avoid the back of her head hitting the Emperor’s face due to the rhythmic motion of the Knight’s walk.

「Or actually, if you just put your back to me instead like this, you don’t have to worry about hitting me」

He held her barely existing breasts with both hands from behind and pulled her back with all his strength. Her back was tight against the emperor’s chest, her long hair in a hair band flowing down the side of the middle-aged man’s face.

「Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty」

The pilot expressed her gratitude and continued to make the Knight walk. She sighed and endured the feel of his palm stroking her small breasts.

He must have not been satisfied with only touching her breast from over her clothes. The emperor lowered his hand, slid the hem of her shirt up her tight skirt, and reached inside her clothes.

「Hng–」

The hands proceeded under the shapeless and useless bra and mercilessly pinched the two buds with their fingertips.

「….Urk….Kuh」

The buds are squeezed again and again, along with the passing of time.

(Hm? This is…?)

A Wood Golem that had appeared in the forest and was eating the trees. After easily defeating it, I enjoyed a famous noodle dish made with leeks.

After visiting two more homemade brothels, the Old Lady and I returned to the royal capital.

I reported to the herbivore mechanic in the hangar that the mission was completed, and he asked me to drop by the merchant guild on my way back.

「I understand. I’ll head there right away」

The messenger Knight we passed just before noon must have brought the urgent news.

(No, it could just be another invitation to play with him)

That’s more likely to be the case with the guild master I know. Let’s just be prepared just in case.

(I’m not sure I want to go if the women are too mature)

With these thoughts in mind, I walked west along the main street to the merchant guild building on the east side of the central square.

But what awaited me in the office on the third floor was a very bad news.

『The elven race used their Spirit Canon and obliterated the Northern city of the Empire, leaving no survivors』

An old man that looks like a goblin, Santa Claus, and the tough-looking chief are sitting around me on the sofa.

「They’ve gone and done it now. The elves are no longer on the same board as the rest of the world」

The guild master, who looks like a goblin, continues to speak with a serious expression.

(The same board?)

I tried to make sense of those words, and laid out the situation in my mind.

(The Empire has ambitions to unite the continent of Ost, and they’re not even trying to hide it)

They have the national power and military strength to do so. They may be a threat to the surrounding countries.

However, this world is somewhat different from the last one I was in. There are two reasons for this.

『The combat power of a humanoid golem called Knights is unparalleled』

First, the battles of these Knights will determine whether one will win or lose the war. The second is the wartime agreement.

『Combat is restricted to military personnel only』

This isn’t just a protection in name only, so the general populace is not directly harmed.

They may get caught up or lose their property, but they won’t be targeted as in ethnic cleansing.

(The war in this world is a battle of the ruling class fighting over territory. And the people are regarded as a part of the resources, like land)

It was unbelievable to me at first. It wasn’t until I saw the subsequent development of Landbarn, which was taken by the Empire, that I finally understood.

The nobles and deputies lost their positions and rights, but the residents remained unchanged.

There were those who lost business due to the change in circumstances, such as the loss of the golem carriages commuting to the Kingdom, but there were also those who seized the opportunity and took flight.

The residents’ pockets are probably warmer than before, partly because the Margrave was keen to improve the city.

(There was the case where they tried to smuggle drugs into the Kingdom, but they did it in secret)

If we have irrefutable evidence that they were involved, they will be criticized not only from outside the country but also from within. That is why they risked everything to destroy every piece of evidence and left.

It should be true because this was Corneal’s conjecture when he actually crossed swords with the disguised imperial knight.

(The Empire is a country where the emperor wields great power, but as it is also a country of people, it cannot be monolithic)

The drug incident would be one of the wedges that would shake the Empire from within. I think that’s why the Kingdom’s higher-ups were so upset that they couldn’t grab their tails, and why they were so hard on Corneal and the others because of it.

「Does that mean that the elves have lost their rights as a player in the territorial war?」

When I asked to confirm, the guild master nodded.

「This indiscriminate attack by the Elves is a violation of the rules of war itself」

The one who replied was Santa Claus-like vice-guild master, who was twiddling his white beard with a somber expression.

The explanation that followed was it won’t be strange for the war to change from 『Elves versus the Empire』 to 『Elves versus humans』 or 『Elves versus the world』

「However, the effect of the brand, 『Elf』 is very strong. The response at the moment is slow」

He said that if a human nation had done the same thing, they would have been beaten to a pulp immediately. Next to him, the tough-looking chief nodded in agreement.

「Still, the people at the top reacted more or less the way I expected them to, and it was sickening」

Then Goblin Jii-chan opened his mouth and spat out such words while shaking his head.

「The people at the Council are all wealthy and powerful. They seem to see things differently from the common people」

They can’t stand the fact that Landbarn was taken from them, and that they didn’t get the Great Pit golem mine that was undiscovered at the time.

「They’re not like me, who will just go back to being a merchant even after the Empire destroys the Kingdom. There’s no way we can understand each other」

He then sighed heavily and continued.

「Even when the city was burned down along with all its inhabitants, they acted as if it was a foreign country. I’d rather quit my job as a guild master and go back to peddling like in the old days than deal with those people」

Apparently, he had a disagreement with the Prime Minister, whom he held in high regard. Santa Claus-like vice-guild master and the tough-looking chief calmed him down.

I, on the other hand, was imagining a golem carriage with a small old man in the driver’s seat on a cobblestone road that led to a distant mountain range in my mind. It was very fitting.

「Would you also come? I’ll introduce you to the best woman in the country」

Goblin Jii-chan looks at me with an impish look in his eyes.

He says she’s an old friend of mine, so I can guarantee the taste, but I’m pretty sure women like the Titan class women I’ve encountered at the Bureikou in the guest house.

I told him that I would sincerely decline.

「We have money and goods to mobilize. But Tauro-kun should just continue what you’re doing for now」

Goblin Jii-chan seems to have regained his composure and decided to continue his work. He told me that he was going to have a meeting with the vice-guild master and the chief right after this.

I didn’t have to attend the meeting, so I decided to go straight home.

(Could it be that that was what Imosuke and the others had been feeling?)

The idea of a night out in a brothel instantly evaporated from my mind. I think as I quicken my pace toward home.

I look up at the sky as it begins to set. I’m not sure because of the lack of information, but the Spirit Cannon might be able to reach the royal capital.

(For now, let’s consult them first)

I thought of the long-lived turtle and hurried on my way with a grim expression on my face.