Published: January 4, 2026
With the sunset at my back, I stepped out of the carriage and waited for the other party to approach.
From across the main road that had naturally formed in the camp, a man appeared.
He left all the soldiers he was leading outside the camp and approached me alone.
His footsteps were heavy and steady, so forceful that if the floor were flimsy, it would creak or even break under his large strides.
The man in armor, half of his face covered by a beard, came straight to me, then bowed deeply to the ground with such force it was almost as if he leapt.
“Long time no see, Lord. I am Jerry Eisen.”
“Hmm, you look well. Has it really been about ten years since we last met in person?”
Jerry, still prostrating himself, lifted only his face to reply.
“Yes, m’lord! It’s been roughly ten years since that day you made me a man.”
“I see. You can relax. It must be difficult to speak like that when you’re bowing so low.”
“Yes, sir!”
Jerry rubbed his forehead against the ground one last time before standing upright.
He had quite a presence.
Looking closely, his armor was well-worn with countless small scratches.
Hidden by his beard, there was a fresh-looking pink scar on the side of his cheek.
It was clear from just that scar that he was still on the front lines.
Combined with his large build, his presence—no, his intimidation—was overwhelming.
I thought a timid new recruit might faint just from his glare.
“By the way, you’ve been around here?”
“Yes, m’lord! For the past three years, I’ve been stationed here in the western region.”
“That’s good, but why have you come? Even if you’re an unnumbered general now, you shouldn’t leave your post without permission.”
“I heard you were coming this way, so I brought three gifts. Figured if I missed this chance, who knows when the next would be.”
“Gifts?”
“Before that... Jerry Eisen, right?”
Henry stepped forward from behind and frowned, looking displeased as he questioned Jerry.
“Is that the way you speak before His Majesty?”
“This is His Imperial Highness the prince. Well, I truly am sorry about that.”
Jerry scratched his head and answered with a troubled expression.
“I was a bandit before, and since Lord took me in, I’ve been moving between battlefields, so I don’t know much about etiquette. Yeah, now I’m a general and should learn, I get it. But if I had the time to learn that stuff, I’d rather use it to kill some barbarian at the frontier to serve the Lord better.”
“...There are limits.”
“Very well.”
“Your Majesty.”
Henry looked back at me and gave a slight reproachful glance that seemed to say, ‘You’re too lenient.’
“I permit it. After all, we’re at the front. Focusing on etiquette here is pointless.”
“If His Majesty says so...”
Henry said this with a reluctant look.
He had long served as the prince of military affairs.
As head of the Ministry of Military Affairs, he regularly interacted with generals who often had rough tempers and poor manners, but usually those who reached the rank of general had some connections or learned etiquette as Jerry said: “You learn once you become a general.”
It was rare for someone like Jerry who didn’t care at all.
Most people gain more to lose as they rise in rank and strive to maintain their position, but Jerry never did.
That was somewhat interesting.
“Enough about that. What are these gifts?”
“Yes, sir! Hey!! Bring them here quickly!”
Jerry shouted loudly toward his troops behind him.
His voice was like thunder, loud enough that the soldiers quietly setting up nearby stopped and turned around in surprise.
Of course, Jerry’s troops heard it and started moving.
After a while, nearly ten soldiers arrived, escorting five women.
“Thank you for waiting, Lord.”
“What are those?”
“Yes, m’lord! I heard the Lord was bringing women, but just one is too lonely. So, I gathered some decent women from my jurisdiction and brought them along.”
“I see.”
I nodded slightly.
Though sudden, as emperor—no, as a nobleman, this was nothing surprising.