Chapter 87
Chapter 87 – Homecoming
Two weeks after the awarding of the [General of Conquest] title .
After finishing his matters at the Royal Capital, Ares headed back to the Schwarzer territory . As soon as he arrived, he gathered together his retainers as well as his father Edgar and Elder Rouen, who protected the northern fortress, to discuss about the future plans .
With the little lord inaugurated as the Lord of Frontier, this means that the Schwarzer’s territory had grown even larger . When Ares inherits the Archduke title, will he combine both territories into one or leave it for his younger brother Julius to govern?
Grants was called the [Cursed Land] for good reasons . Its territory is prone to attacks from either monsters or barbarian tribes . And due to that, it barely attract any newcomers . Therefore Ares couldn’t simply go there without making any preparation first .
Large scale development is necessary .
[Being a General of Conquest on top of the Lord of the Frontier… milord surely brings back extra work . ]
That was Shion commenting .
[Being a lord of a territory surrounded by several other tribes and with a title that is unnecessarily very high in rank but holds no actual power or benefits other than inciting grudges and jealousy… His Majesty Emperor is really cruel . ]
Ares could only chuckle at Shion’s comment . Because it’s the exact truth .
[As Shion said, governing the territory may prove to be very difficult . That place has many warriors, but lacking politicians . I would require most of my private army and a lot of human resources from Schwarzer territory if I want to run that place properly…]
After a short silence, Elder Rouen opened up .
[Milord, how about letting young master do what he wants?]
Rouen was one of the few who had better understanding of Ares . From what he heard just now, he realized that Ares was worried that he would struggle getting human resources while governing Grants .
[Young master rarely sounded this grave . It must mean that he needs a lot of manpower to aid him . I also think that having more talented people at his command will help young master immensely to achieve his goal . ]
Then he added .
[The current Schwarzer territory is in a stable condition . Losing some manpower won’t shake its foundation . The younger generation are also growing up, so it’s best to start to let them take over as well . ]
Everyone nodded at the trustworthy old man’s words .
[Rouen’s words are indeed reasonable . Anyone else with suggestions?]
Edgar calmly reminded everyone . After confirming that everyone was in agreement, he turned to Ares .
[Did you already make your selection for the required personnel?]
[Taking too many people will still affect the territory . Also, if I took too many important people, it’ll only hurt the territory . Therefore, after some considerations, I have written this…]
Ares handed Edgar a list of names . Reading through it, Edgar noticed that one-fifth of entire officers working in the territory were on the list .
[I see… a good balance of veterans and rookies… well done . ]
[In addition, I intentionally picked those with little to no attachment to this place since they’ll be going to a remote place . If it’s this number of people… I think it won’t affect Schwarzer territory’s stability . ]
After confirming Ares’ words, Edgar then moved on to those with emphasis on military and political affairs . Seeing this, Ares added in .
[I would like to take these following people with me this time: Sigurd and his subordinate Arnold . Shion to be my advisor staff . And… although this may hurt the territory, I would require George’s power to manage the place . ]
Many had already seen this coming . The valiant Sigurd, the wise Shion, and the great figure behind Schwarzer territory managing and development, George were on the list . These people can be said as Ares’ direct subordinates after all .
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Edgar gave these particular people a look .
[Do you have any objection?]
He asked .
[Wherever Ares-sama go, I will follow . ]
Sigurd gave his agreement .
[It’s troublesome… but I can’t just let milord wander around on his own, can I now? I will be able to witness a different kind of culture in the process, yes?]
So did Shion .
[The Schwarzer territory has long been stabilized . My absence shouldn’t cause any difference . Moreover, developing an underdeveloped place sounds more attractive to me . ]
And George as well .
After listening to each one of them, Edgar chuckled and proceeded to sign the order .
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Ares summoned Sigurd, Shion and George afterward for a more detailed discussion .
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[There are many warriors living in Grants . We must properly determine their abilities and reorganize the army . Before Milord arrived… I will go there to prepare things in advance . ]
Shion said .
[There is an obvious shortage in domestic officials . We must collect human resources not only from the Schwarzer territory, but also from the Royal Capital . Especially fellow alumni of the academy… there are many of them who are not satisfied with their current situation . Let’s pull them in . ]
George also added .
[In any case, major reforms are needed . We should take one step at a time . ]
After Ares said so, Shion also chimed in .
[It is as Milord said . Arcadia will be in a rough state three years from now perhaps . We must build up enough power to withstand the turbulent time . ]
Shion then looked at the three other participants .
[In at least three years time, let us solidify our foothold and dye the eastern region in our color… that is what I think . ]
[Wouldn’t they suspect us of rebellion if we did it in too flashy way?]
Sigurd spoke up his doubt .
[By that point Arcadia Empire will be too confused to react . We will then show them our power… one that does not fall behind to Arcadia Empire or any of the four great powers . ]
Shion laughed confidently .
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[This will be our land of beginning . The soldiers are rough and so are its people . Barbarians and monsters trod the land nearby . Looking from only this side, it doesn’t seem to be a promising place… but from a different perspective, it’s actually a place with lots of room for development . The soldiers can become even stronger, the people can be educated from scratch, and new land can be opened up . ]
[Rumours have it that the Land of Demons is actually fertile ground . Also, if we can somehow make peace with the other ethnic groups, we can open up a new trade route and if we do well enough, there is a chance that they’ll be willing to fight on our side… no?]
George concluded, following Shion’s argument .
[It can be done if it’s you, Ares Schwarzer-sama . ]
Ares smiled in agreement, and spoke up .
[Tomorrow, I will head to the capital once more . After officially taking the mantle of Lord of Frontier and General of Conquest, I will go to the new territory immediately . Well, before that I’m going to stop by at Redgear, Trevoir and Brittany… so I should be arriving at Grants about three weeks later . All of you should be there before me . Each one should do their duties on the fly . ]
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Ares returned to the Royal Capital once more .
Then there was a ceremony, officially appointing Ares as the Lord of Frontier and the General of Conquest .
After that ceremony, Ares formally became the Lord of Frontier Ares Schwarzer, with the Grants Principality (and the surrounding area) becoming part of Schwarzer territory . .
Not only the Royal Clan, but also the Schwarzer clan were busy making preparation . The two clans will be tied in engagement and later on, marriage .
But later that day, Ares had already left on his horse towards Heinz .
『The previously veiled-in-shadows ‘Cursed Land’ finally saw its first sunlight upon the arrival of the Hero Sovereign and from then on it would become the very land of light . 』
The territorial reform that Ares planned thus began that day . And it will forever be recorded in history .