Chapter 69: Using Barbarians to Control Barbarians
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 69: Using Barbarians to Control Barbarians
Aenya’s face instantly brightened. Her beauty, like a freshly bloomed flower, seemed to illuminate her surroundings.
“Brother…”
Gazing at me with tender eyes, Aenya could no longer hold back and stole my lips. She kissed me relentlessly, the soft sounds like she was stamping her claim on me.
But Piole wasn’t one to just stand by and watch such a display of affection. She hugged my arm even tighter and said, “Ah, but my father must have helped you, right?”
For the sake of his own daughter, who was under my care, Andrei had no choice but to help Aenya.
As if to say it wasn’t over, Aenya kept her hands on my face and smiled slyly.
“Oh, didn’t you know? Sir Andrei is in a state where he can barely handle his own affairs.”
With a look of disbelief, Piole pulled away from my embrace and shot to her feet.
“Father!?”
“Sir Andrei’s influence has been drastically reduced. Because of you, brother.”
Piole’s gaze turned to me. I clicked my tongue. I had a rough idea of what had happened.
“It must be because of the fishing rights.”
On my way to the castle, I had seen the docks crowded with sailing ships unbefitting of such a small city. It suggested that the source of herring had completely shifted from Dresden to Quaran.
This was why Andrei, who had brokered the lease of the fishing rights, was now in a difficult position.
Though unintentional, the result was that he had caused a loss for the lord he served, all for my sake, someone he was close to.
“Correct! I saw signs of it from the moment I entered the castle, and now he’s practically being treated like a traitor. They’re saying it was a mistake to lease the fishing rights for such a low price.”
“Sir Andrei told me that the pessimistic outlook was dominant among the vassals at the time.”
“They’re just finding fault. Using it as a pretext to attack him. At yesterday’s advisory council meeting, they even pressured him to use his master-student relationship with you to sell off the fishing rights. Of course, Sir Andrei refused as if it wasn't even worth considering.”
He couldn’t have done it, if only for Piole’s sake. Piole seemed to realize this as well, biting her lip. I intertwined my fingers with hers.
“I’ve unintentionally caused you trouble. But Sir Andrei will be fine.”
“I know. He’s a strong man.”
After a moment of thought, Piole buried her face in my chest again. I couldn’t tell if she was trusting in Andrei or if she was anxious about Aenya clinging to me like glue.
“Is that really your fault, brother? The truth is, in politics, it’s normal to keep each other in check and ruthlessly exploit weaknesses for the sake of petty power.”
Aenya, defending me, looked up with a peculiar expression and continued.
“If anything, it was strange that the vassals served the princess with one heart and mind when she was appointed Castellan out of the blue, with no connections here. Right, brother?”
She was right. Normally, they should have either ostracized the Castellan or turned her into a scarecrow, just as Josephine and Joang had done to Ailgar.
But reality was different. Far from ostracizing her, they followed her exceptionally well. It was because of the Castellan’s ability.
And the fact that Andrei was under attack meant that her ability was no longer working.
Because Aenya is the core of the problem.
Witches are not affected by each other’s abilities. That included beneficial effects as well.
I looked down at Aenya, who was exuding an air of knowing something. The way she spoke as if she had personally attended the advisory council meeting was also unlike the Aenya I knew.
I found it quite satisfying. After all, the weapon of Aenya, who was called a fatal beauty in the future that would no longer come, wasn’t just her looks.
I had sent Aenya to the Castellan for her safety and in the hopes that she would learn well, and it seemed to have been quite a success.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Well, I have gotten a lot prettier, haven’t I? What? Can’t hold back?”
Aenya grinned and climbed on top of me. She rubbed her face against my chest, then lifted her head just enough to flash a charming smile, the way she subtly rubbed her bottom against the front of my pants was alluring.
“W-wait! Siblings shouldn’t do that!”
Piole once again tried to push Aenya away. But Aenya wasn’t foolish enough to fall for the same trick twice. She held onto me tightly and counterattacked.
“Don’t act so innocent when you’ve done it too, sister.”
“D-done what?”
“Sex, I’m talking about sex.”
Piole’s face turned red as a beet, while Aenya smirked wickedly. Looking at them, it was hard to tell who was the older sister and who was the younger.
“I-I haven’t!” Piole denied, but her response was a little too late.
Besides, Aenya knew full well that I wouldn’t leave a beauty like Piole alone. Aenya grinned and said, “Then you can just keep not doing it. I’ll be the one to take care of brother from now on.”
“You…!”
At a loss for words, Piole fumed for a long moment before abruptly standing up and leaving. Aenya clenched her fist in celebration. Then, belatedly, she glanced at me and asked, “Is it okay if you don’t follow her?”
“Piole promised to be satisfied just by being by my side. The shock won’t last long. And you are more precious to me.”
“Hmph, you’ve gotten even smoother, brother.”
“And you don’t like it?”
Aenya shook her head and stood up. She held out her hand to me. As I took it and got to my feet, she pushed my back.
“Go after her.”
“What about you?”
“As the main wife, shouldn’t I show some magnanimity for the peace of the family? It’s not like waiting one more day will cause any problems.”
Subtly confirming her position as the main wife, Aenya gave me a light kiss and continued.
“But don’t make me wait too long. I might actually get pissed, you know?”
Shooting me a glare, Aenya confidently exited the room first, swaying her hips seductively.
Piole was pacing in the hallway not far from the room. It seemed she had been waiting for me. Just as I expected.
“Piole.”
At my call, Piole turned, her face instantly brightening. Then, as if realizing she had shown too much joy, she scowled as if nothing had happened, snorted, and turned her head away.
“Piole.”
I called her name again and pulled her into an embrace. Piole didn’t try to break free. Instead, she merely expressed her discontent with words.
“I can understand other women. But not your sister! How could you be with your own sister?”
“Why not?”
“Because… He said not to?”
My confident tone made Piole’s voice lose its force. She thought she had misunderstood something. Then, realizing she’d been had, her eyes widened as she glared up at me.
I chuckled.
“It’s a common occurrence in noble families, under the pretext of preserving a pure bloodline.”
“But never with a full-blooded sister! At most, a cousin!”
“Same difference.”
“You’ll be excommunicated if you’re caught!”
“How many among the countless noble families have been excommunicated for something like this? As long as you have the power to stand against the church, you don’t need to worry.”
Piole puffed up her cheeks like a blowfish. When I poked one with my finger, the air hissed out. She scowled.
“I’m not joking. Can’t you just be satisfied with a normal relationship?”
“No. If I desire a woman, I will have her, regardless of her status or her relationship to me. Just as I did with you.”
I grabbed Piole’s bottom firmly with both hands. Startled, she quickly looked around. Although it was a secluded area, this was still a hallway where someone could pass by at any moment.
“A-are you crazy?”
Despite her words, Piole pressed herself closer to me. Her hands gripping my body were tense, as if I were about to run away.
“Piole. No matter what happens, I will not abandon you. So you can rest assured.”
What Piole was worried about wasn’t my taboo relationship with Aenya. She was simply anxious, afraid of losing me to a powerful rival who had suddenly appeared.
The time Aenya and I had spent together, an amount that could almost be called a lifetime, was a factor Piole could never hope to catch up to.
The fact that she waited for me, and that she held on to me so tightly to prevent me from escaping in a situation where someone could see us, made it clear.
Moreover, she had a complex about her own body, didn’t she? That’s why she constantly sought validation of her worth even while we were intimate.
“You’re truly the worst womanizer…”
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“That wasn’t a compliment!”
Piole stomped on my foot and used the opening to slip out of my embrace, striding away. But it didn’t mean she was rejecting me.
After getting a good distance ahead, she looked back, beckoned to me, and shouted, “Hurry up! You idiot!”
I was faced with two immediate problems. The first was to punish those who were attacking Andrei using my fishing rights as a pretext and who had also tried to sell Aenya off for their own gain.
How dare those utterly useless fools…
Before the Castellan’s appointment, no vassal other than Sir Andrei had distinguished himself. That was why Quaran had remained a small, remote city.
I had dismissed them for that reason, but I never imagined they would be so ignorant of their place as to bare their claws at me. This, too, was likely due to the variable that was Count Dresden.
The fortunate thing was that dealing with them wouldn’t be too difficult.
Aenya seemed to have the Castellan’s favor, and the Castellan herself was unlikely to be fond of vassals who occupied positions without any ability. Andrei would also be a staunch supporter.
The real problem is Count Dresden.
The fact that he had resorted to the extreme measure of assassination to eliminate me told me that Count Dresden’s patience was reaching its limit.
Another uncomfortable point was that unlike the Count, who had no qualms about trying to assassinate a vassal of a baron under his command, I couldn’t act so boldly because of that very relationship.
When I eventually swallowed the barony, Count Dresden would surely try to intervene, and this incident could easily become his justification.
Is that really true?
I shifted my perspective. The Count would never give up the fishing rights that brought him immense profit anyway. He would be even more adamant, believing they were originally his.
Furthermore, if my plan proceeded and all of the Rasino family’s sons died, the Count would definitely intervene. He would have the justification of being the maternal family of Eusebia, who would become the sole heir.
The Count’s intervention was inevitable, even if I walked on eggshells and kowtowed to him. If trying to stop it was meaningless, it would be more effective to use it to my advantage.
Yes. It would be better to…
Rasino. Debussy. Quaran. Aenya. The princess. The royal family. And Count Dresden. The given situations and conditions fit together like puzzle pieces.
I looked at the completed picture and thought.
What if I were to swallow not only the Rasino Barony but the Debussy Barony as well?
And what if Aenya could persuade the Castellan to lend the aid of Quaran and her network?
Geographically, it would create a situation that puts pressure on Count Dresden’s domain from all sides. Of course, even with everything combined, it wouldn’t match the Count’s power, but it wasn’t entirely without possibility.
The flow of events was much faster than my original plan, so I didn’t know what variables might pop up, but the Count’s intervention alone meant things had already deviated significantly from the set path.
The overall picture is actually better than the original plan. Since the Count made the first move, it would be natural to use him.
My confidence was further bolstered after I confirmed Andrei’s true skill for the first time in a long while.
Clang—
In a duel that came about after Piole tattled that my strength had become strangely powerful, Andrei effortlessly deflected my full-power attack and even succeeded in a counterattack.
“Whew. It’s like fighting a large monster. I can’t go easy on you anymore.”
Despite his words, Andrei still had an air of leisure. As he finished speaking, a message I hadn’t seen in a while popped up.
[Calculating experience points. The opponent’s level is high. You have acquired bonus experience points.]
Was it because he was fighting me seriously? Even though my level’s second digit had changed, Andrei gave me the same amount of experience as before.
Adding his swordsmanship skills, which weren’t quantified by a level, he was an incredibly strong warrior. Much stronger than I remembered.