Chapter 114

A three-year armistice agreement was concluded between the Kingdom of Saxens and the Kingdom of Portand.

For Saxens, this period meant they had to rebuild the town of Romanburg and fortify the border defenses.

With the conclusion of the war, Lady Clara and I were finally able to return safely to Dresden.

Due to her recent military achievements, Lady Clara was to be promoted to Baron and granted a new territory.

If that happened, I was told she could appoint me as a knight under a Baron’s authority.

However, doing that would make me her vassal, meaning I wouldn’t be able to marry Lady Clara.

In the end, I would either have to make a fortune in business and buy a title with money, or place reasonably well in a martial arts tournament.

The special medical unit was disbanded.

However, Corporal Leo Schleich managed to pull some strings behind the scenes and got himself appointed as a non-commissioned officer attached to Lady Clara.

Leo was highly capable in both literary and military arts, a truly excellent talent, so we had headhunted him.

Lady Clara was already scheduled to be transferred to the Royal Guard Regiment rather than the Royal Capital City Guard, and I believed Leo would be useful there as well.

Of course, I had run a few tests before poaching him.

“Leo, answer what I’m about to ask you honestly.”

With those words, I activated my skill, Judging Truth and Falsehood.

“Have you ever killed anyone outside of war?”

“No, I haven’t.”

“Have you ever stolen or plundered money or goods?”

“Never.”

“Have you ever violated a woman?”

“No.”

“Have you ever violated a man?”

“No, way. Men are a bit…”

It seemed he hadn’t committed the three great evils of murder, theft, or rape.

“Then, what do you think of me and Lady Clara?”

“I believe Lady Ansbach is a fair person. She gives the impression of strictly disciplining herself, which is rare for a noble. But to be completely honest, she’s a little scary.”

Is that how she looked to Leo? She actually had plenty of cute sides to her… No, to me, she was the very definition of cuteness itself.

“As for you, Sergeant Major, isn’t it a bit late to ask? I respect you as my superior officer, and I consider you someone I can trust.”

Perhaps it was because we had shared intense hours working together over the past few days. There was no falsehood in Leo’s words.

“Thank you. That brings me to my point—would you like to come to Dresden with Lady Clara?”

If things left as they were, Leo would likely remain here as part of the Romanburg garrison.

As a veteran soldier, he might have been able to secure a decent position.

There didn’t seem to be any combat on the horizon for a while, so it promised a safe and decent income, even if it had a fixed term.

I hadn’t expected much from the start, but Lady Clara, who was about to become a Baron, needed capable subordinates.

Her territory would probably be an enclave rather than a place adjacent to Ebba-berg.

While we could travel back and forth using the portal, I wanted to station a trustworthy subordinate there permanently.

“My life was saved by Lord Hippocrates. I also feel a debt of gratitude to Lady Ansbach, who summoned Lord Hippocrates. Part of it is to repay that debt, but more than that, the idea of testing my own abilities under a newly appointed Baron is exciting.”

For a commoner soldier, unless they were an absolute hero, commanding a company was the absolute limit.

However, if one’s abilities were recognized under a rising noble, it was entirely possible to be granted the rank of a knight.

“Please allow me to accompany you.”

And so, Leo Schleich joined us as a new companion.

With this, Lady Clara’s official subordinates became four people: Kota Hinoharu, Akito Yoshioka, Fiene, and Leo Schleich.

That night, we discussed our future plans in Lady Clara’s room.

It had been a long time since the two of us sat side-by-side on a sofa.

We enjoyed a bit of the flirting time we hadn’t had since leaving Dresden.

“Is it still too early to show Leo the portal?”

“Yes. It’s not that I don’t trust him, but it’s premature.”

It would take a little more time before we started disclosing our abilities to Leo.

For the time being, there was no urgent business.

Lady Clara’s baron investiture ceremony was about two weeks away.

“Truthfully, I wanted to enjoy the journey to the royal capital with just the two of us…”

Lady Clara leaned her body slightly against mine.

If Leo hadn’t been here, we would have planned a leisurely trip for just the two of us.

Since every day had been filled with continuous tension lately, I wanted to spoil Lady Clara as much as possible during the journey.

“Are you tired?”

“I won’t get tired from something like this.”

Lady Clara was truly tough, so in reality, she probably wasn’t very tired.

“As for me, I would be happier if you relied on me a bit more.”

“Eh? I-I see… But aren’t you the one who’s tired, Kota?”

Saying that, Lady Clara drew my head into her embrace.

To tell the truth, I barely felt any fatigue.

While treating thousands of patients, my God Finger had evolved again, and I was finally able to perform massages on myself.

This was incredible.

I tried giving myself a fatigue-recovery massage, and it felt so good I almost lost consciousness.

But as I was held close by Lady Clara like this, a sense of fulfillment that couldn’t be obtained through God Finger filled my heart.

I could really feel myself being healed.

Being patted on the head like this made me feel like it would be perfectly fine to just become a dog.

“Lady Clara.”

“What is it?”

“I’m happy.”

She squeezed me tightly, almost to the point of hurting.

The day before our departure for Dresden finally arrived, and Gary visited my room.

It was normal for him to come over to hang out, but today his atmosphere was different from usual.

“What’s wrong? Are you worrying about something?”

“Yeah… Actually, Kota, I have a favor to ask.”

I had already become good friends with Gary, and he looked out for us in various ways.

If possible, I intended to grant whatever he asked, but I wondered what it was.

“I want you to go see my mom, whom I left behind on Earth.”

In this world, a person couldn’t be summoned unless they had very little attachment left to Earth.

Gary also had almost no regrets about his life in America, and he was thoroughly enjoying his life in Saxens alongside his abilities.

Even so, he still seemed concerned about the family he had left behind.

“My mom lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, with my younger sister. Since I suddenly vanished, I’m sure she’s worried. Besides… my dad is gone, so they’re by no means wealthy.”

His mother was fifty-three years old and worked as a clerk for a gas company.

His sister was apparently in the middle of studying to become a nurse.

“If it’s alright with you, Kota, I’d like you to go check on them and pass along some money, telling them it’s from me.”

“Something like that is no problem at all. I’ll head over right away.”

“Thank you, Kota! Now I can rest easy.”

But if I suddenly showed up, wouldn’t I be treated as a suspicious Japanese guy?

After giving it various thoughts, we decided to record a video letter together.

It would be fine as long as we used a smartphone.

“Mom, Cindy, it’s been a while. It’s Gary. Right now, I’m in a place that’s really far away—”

Gary continued talking to the camera with an embarrassed expression.

It seemed he chose to keep the truth about transferring to another world a secret.

Even if he said something like that, they would probably just think he had gone crazy.

“—And that’s why I’m entrusting three hundred thousand dollars to my friend, Kota. I hope you can use it for Mom’s living expenses and Cindy’s tuition. Also, please give Kota my collection. Those are things he needs. You haven’t thrown them away, right? If you did, my next allowance will be a long time from now! Hahaha, just kidding. If they’re gone, that’s fine. Just tell Kota about it.”

The collection apparently consisted of manga, magazines, and figurines.

“Mom, take care of your health. Cut back on the alcohol. Is Cindy still dating Burton? I hope things go well. See ya.”

Gary lightly raised his hand to close out his farewell greeting.

“Is something like this good enough?”

“Yeah. With this, I shouldn’t be treated as a suspicious person either.”

“Thank you, Kota. Sorry to trouble you, but please exchange this money into dollars and give it to Mom. Also, this is for your travel expenses.”

Whoa, hold on, aren’t these large gold coins? There were three million Marques here.

“This is too much. No matter how expensive America is, it won’t cost this much.”

“Just use first class. It’s the least I can do to show my gratitude.”

It would be my first time flying first class.

When I went on my honeymoon, it was business class.

Back then, we had gone to Italy.

I remembered Emi for the first time in a while, but it brought almost no heartache.

I suppose this is how time flows on.

Once we arrived in Dresden, I would have to get some time off from Lady Clara to go to America.

Since my return meant Yoshioka would also be returning to that world, I should probably explain the situation to Yoshioka sooner rather than later.

There was also the matter of Amida Trading while we were away.

Keeping a long-term stay on Earth in mind, I turned various thoughts over in my head.