XII Cassandra
After the selection for the queen candidates, the selection committee, composed of Frau, Carmilla, Gamaras, Ogma, and Yamato, decided to accept Sheila, the runner-up, as the fourth queen.
…Why didn’t anyone ask for my opinion, the one getting married?
As for the other 30 or so candidates, except for Karen from the Hundred, most were taken under Carmilla’s wing.
According to Carmilla,
“It’s unfair that my sister has a direct mage corps, but I don’t,”
Well, the mage corps is a legitimate Faloon unit,
but it has become completely Frau’s private army.
Surprisingly, there were no objections to Carmilla’s seemingly selfish proposal.
The consensus was that with the number of queens increasing, it would be beneficial to have more women capable of both guarding and fighting.
Where do queens with titles like [Thunder Emperor], [Mad Princess], [Sword Saint], and [Dual Swords] need protection anyway?
Nonetheless, a direct unit under Carmilla was formed, named the Palace Knights.
Despite being pregnant, Carmilla was dedicated to the training of the Palace Knights. She wanted to subject them to the same rigorous training she received in Faloon.
Carmilla personally fed her new subordinates monster meat and guided them deep into the Beast Forest. She showed an unexpectedly nurturing side.
As for my master, she was enjoying her status as Faloon’s queen.
Occasionally, she trained me or sparred with the top members of the Hundred, like Ogma, Yamato, Chrom, and Warren, though it was mostly one-sided beatings.
Ogma and the others seemed to enjoy it, which made me question their sanity.
My master was almost always in my bedroom at night.
I felt a bit guilty toward Frau and Carmilla, so I invited them as well, but their responses were dismissive: “Child-rearing is difficult,” and “I’m pregnant, so I can’t join you.” Maybe they dislike me?
“Your subordinates are quite formidable. No other nation has gathered such strong individuals.”
Master said, lying beside me in bed.
“But to spread the consumption of monster meat to so many people… I thought only a few could eat it. You organized those seeking strength and used them for your training. That’s something I never thought of.”
Although it happened by chance, I’ll take the compliment.
“By the way, Master, why did you come to Faloon 10 years ago?”
Back then, I was barely surviving Master’s ‘training,’ so I never asked much about her.
“Hmm? Didn’t I tell you? To explore the Beast Forest.”
“The Beast Forest?”
The Beast Forest is vast, covering most of the southern part of the Ares continent. Faloon and Kadonia are located at the small part where the north and south of the continent are connected.
“Yes. The Beast Forest is full of strong monsters. I intended to conquer it over several years. But it was too vast. I made Faloon my base and explored as far as I could, but the forest is unfathomable. I trained you every seven days because I couldn’t stay in the forest longer than that.”
Even Master could only endure the forest for seven days.
Currently, Faloon is expanding into the Beast Forest, but it’s only a small part of its entirety. The deeper we go, the stronger the monsters, so there will be a limit.
“I’ve ventured deep into the Beast Forest myself. The monsters keep getting stronger. According to legend, a demon king is sealed in the forest’s depths.”
There’s a legend that my ancestor, a hero, sealed the demon king deep in the forest.
“I would have loved to fight the demon king. But I never saw any demons there. The forest only has primitive monsters, not human-like demons. It’s great for getting monster meat, though.”
Demons look similar to humans but have long lifespans, high magical power, and superior physical abilities. The demon king is their ruler. It’s debatable whether demons are monsters, but they command many monsters.
“Is it hard to get monster meat in the central regions?”
“Well, it’s not common. You can find it if you don’t mind the quality, but it’s not like in Faloon where killer rabbit meat is always available.”
“Even in Faloon, killer rabbits almost went extinct. We’ve now succeeded in domesticating them and have established a system to supply monster meat efficiently.”
While we don’t need a huge amount of monster meat, the system ensures that it’s used effectively
In the past, the people who caught the monsters ate a little of their meat and discarded the rest, but now a system is in place to divide the meat of one monster into appropriate portions for an appropriate number of people so that the meat can be distributed without waste.
“That’s something unique to Faloon. Other countries likely couldn’t domesticate monsters. In the central regions, monsters are clearly enemies of humanity. Faloon’s proximity to the Beast Forest means people are less averse to monsters and don’t mind breeding them. In the central regions, eating monster meat is unthinkable.”
Master Cassandra was unexpectedly practical. Since sharing a bedroom with her, I realized that she wasn’t just obsessed with fighting. She had a calm and rational perspective on things.
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“That’s why only Faloon can use monster meat to enhance military power around here. Other nations might be investigating, but they can’t replicate it.”
“I don’t intend to boost military power. The Handred is just a group of people who purely want to become stronger. I desire peace.”
“Then what about that monster army? Isn’t that military power?”
Master Cassandra looked at me, not with a harsh gaze, but one that wasn’t accusing either.
“Well, it’s true that they’re a force, but I think it’s fine. The monster army came about by chance, but it means we won’t have to turn civilians into soldiers in times of war. If monsters can fight instead of civilians, isn’t that a good thing?”
In wars, it’s common to conscript civilians as soldiers, who are usually unmotivated and weak in combat. In contrast, monsters are aggressive and strong. Using them as a substitute for militia seems like a perfect fit.
“Isn’t forming a wyvern army an overkill?”
Master Cassandra teased me with a mischievous expression.
Wyverns were the second candidate after war wolves for a monster army.
I chose them simply because “dragons are cool.”
Though it was a superficial reason, Kiri suggested that “dragons are intelligent, so communicating with them shouldn’t be too difficult.”
While higher-tier dragons prefer solitude, lower-tier wyverns form packs. By capturing the pack leader, we could potentially control the entire group.
Currently, we’re training a pack of about ten wyverns.
“If we’re forming an army, why not use dragons? They’re cool.”
“Indeed, dragons are nice.”
Master Cassandra glanced at the baby white dragon sleeping in a basket lined with cloth.
Oh right, this little one is a dragon too.
“What will you do with that white dragon?”
“Once it grows up, I want to travel with it.”
A sword saint riding a legendary white dragon would be terrifying. Wouldn’t towns and countries panic at their arrival?
“How long until it grows up?”
“Who knows? It’s only this big after being frozen for ten years, so it might take a long time to reach a size fit for riding. But I don’t plan to travel until our child grows up a bit, so it should be fine.”
“Right now, the central regions aren’t conducive to travel anyway.”
According to the information gathered from the concubine candidates, the central regions are tense, with nations fervently building up their forces. Recruitment of talented individuals has become aggressive, leading some concubine candidates to seek refuge in Faloon. Sheila, now the fourth concubine, is a prime example.
“Isn’t that your fault?”
Master Cassandra smirked.
The central regions’ tension increased significantly after the Dorsen Kingdom weakened. They lost 10,000 soldiers and three of the top five warriors. Neighboring countries saw this as an opportunity to invade Dorsen.
“I was defending myself. It was justified.”
“If you hadn’t annexed Cadonia, Dorsen wouldn’t have acted.”
“It was a consequence. I didn’t want territory. I just wanted to live peacefully in Faloon.”
“Becoming king was a consequence, and so was taking Cadonia? That might be your destiny.”
Master Cassandra narrowed her eyes, saying something cryptic.
“What do you mean, Master ?”
She gently placed a finger on my lips.
“Don’t call me master. I’m your wife now. Call me Cassandra.”
“…Cassandra, what do you mean?”
Calling her by name felt incredibly embarrassing.
“You’ll understand eventually. People around you must feel it too. You’re that kind of man.”
Cassandra, known as the Red Demon, blushed a bit.
Sheila, now part of the Faloon royal family, was bewildered.
She had joined the queen selection tournament due to certain circumstances but wasn’t serious about it. She intended to lose at some point, but her pride as a top-tier warrior prevented her from holding back, leading her to the finals.
Her final opponent was Cassandra, who had won the tournament unarmed.
(Beating her will be tough.)
Sheila, having survived countless battles, could accurately gauge an opponent’s strength. Cassandra was extraordinary. Although she fought unarmed, she didn’t seem like a martial artist. It meant she wasn’t even using her full power.
Sheila couldn’t make Cassandra use a weapon
and was defeated with a palm strike to the jaw and a kick to the stomach.
The impact was physical and psychological. It didn’t feel like being hit or kicked.
It felt like being struck by a century-old thick log.
To tell the truth, Sheila had been afraid that she might accidentally become a candidate for the queen, but she realized that she had been too proud.
(Only a monster could become Faloon king’s bride.)
She was relieved internally, but to her surprise, she was chosen as the fourth concubine.
This was her miscalculation.
TLNOTE: While waiting for the next chapter , I implore you dear readers to read other masterpiece novels that also written by the same author :
- Who killed the Hero?
- The Suspects of Necromancy
- The Wicked Princess and 12 Eyes – The Strongest Squires and the Legendary Evil Woman, the Second Time in Her Life
- The Exiled Merchant Saves the World with the Power of Gold (translated by my friend meerkat)
Btw, volume 2 English translation is finished
Also check out my friend Localizermeerkat for more LN translations!
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