Chapter 38 - Arc 2, Crescent Moon (1/2)

Ernst had planned to head to Eitt Village the moment he returned from Iben. The moment he arrived back at the estate, however, a snowstorm began to blow as if it had been lying in wait.

This was Ernst’s first time seeing a snowstorm since he had arrived in Meissen. It truly looked as if the snow had imprisoned them.

Despite this, Targes still ordered the militia troops to train. It wasn’t as if their enemies would subside just because the weather was bad, he reasoned.

The troops were burdened with complaints, but now that they were starting to become disciplined, they knew that Targes’ words were right. They all followed their captain, fully throwing themselves into training.

“Lord Ernst, did you call for me?”

It seemed that when Targes returned just now, he had left an extreme cold. Targes entered the room, his breath turning white in the air.

Ernst encouraged him to take a seat in front of the fireplace and handed him some hot water. Ernst still couldn’t buy tea leaves yet.

“How was the training?”

“I want to say that the newcomers are getting up to speed, but… whenever they can find a way to take it easy, they’ll do it.”

“Take it easy… you say?”

“That’s right. Since it’s hard to see through the snowstorm, they probably thought that no one would know that they left their positions during the march and just waited for the rest of the squad to come back around.”

When that image drifted in front of his mind, Ernst’s lips quirked up with a smile.

“What they didn’t know was that even with a snowstorm blowing around, Ganche’s eyes see just as clearly as on a sunny day. So when he found those soldiers, he snatched them by the scruffs of their necks and hurled them back into line.”

Ernst laughed aloud.

“That sounds like a lot of fun.”

“Well… yeah, I guess so.”

Targes smiled wryly.

The soldiers’ lack of eagerness to train seriously was a mark of the peaceful times.

Of course, that didn’t mean that they could afford to shirk their training.

“Well then, as for the reason why I called for you despite how busy you are.”

Targes corrected his posture and turned toward Ernst.

He changed greatly from his first impression, now becoming the extremely capable and reliable Captain Targes.

“There is just one thing I would like to ask of you.”

As Ernst said this, he placed a small bag on top of the desk.

Ten days afterward, they were able to depart for Eitt Village.

Ernst set off with Targes, Ganche, and the 7th platoon accompanying him.

This time, he didn’t bring anyone to serve as his butler. Ernst wanted to avoid any conflicts with the villagers. At this point, he wouldn’t gain anything by bringing someone who was unable to conduct themselves properly. Ernst politely refused Ganche’s offer to carry him, and one of the soldiers drove Ernst’s carriage instead.

Of course Ernst wished for nothing more than to touch and be held by Ganche. When Ganche’s scent enveloped him, Ernst felt that he had nothing to fear.

However, he took care to not make others see him so quickly as someone who was always touching his partner irrespective of the situation.

Ernst was the Lord who commanded Meissen.

The Lord must not treat anyone preferentially, for both Meissen and Ganche’s sake.

There may be someone out there who will think about harming Ganche. Ernst couldn’t afford to close his eyes to the dark side of humanity.

This was one of the lessons Ernst had learned in the royal palace.

Eitt Village was located 6 hours away on foot to the east of the estate. It was located in the middle of a sprawling forest, with Grude Continent situated nearby. It had a population of 37 people, 5 of which were children and 8 of which had Kleber’s disease.

“It doesn’t snow over here?”

Ernst asked this to the villagers who had come out to greet him.

“Yes, there isn’t any snow. Because of the Grude Continent’s influence, it snows less and less each year. These past ten years, it hasn’t snowed at all.”

In the house of one of the people who had come to meet him, Ernst conversed with two villagers. Targes accompanied him again this time. Ernst’s impression of him was that this person had a quite keen sense of tact.