Chapter 39: But why is your name here?

The Duke took another sip of coffee. The sandwich remained untouched, drying out.

Soon he picked up a pen. The scratching sound echoed. I sorted the documents he had finished writing by purpose.

Just when my mind was becoming blank due to the mechanical task, the sound of the pen nib scratching the paper stopped. The last document was passed to me. It was an order form bound for the crystal mine in Westell.

My hand, which was about to write the destination on the envelope and fold the dried order form, paused. Because I belatedly discovered a number of incomprehensible units written on it.

“This is…”

A sound escaped my mouth without my realizing it.

Is this massive amount of crystal the price the Duke has to pay?

Crystal is a relatively common mineral and its value isn’t that high, but this amount would definitely adversely affect the watch business. It exceeds five years’ worth of mining output from the Westell crystal mine. In a situation where demand and market prices for gems fluctuate like these days, it had value beyond simple numbers.

That engagement was clearly a trap the Duke had to escape. Even if he had to pay an excessive price.

However, just trying to think about the repercussions when this amount of crystal is released into the market at once made my head go blank. I couldn’t even gauge which side this mad market would favor. It could become a bomb for both the King and the Duke. The King couldn’t be incapable of such calculation.

“It’s not a bribe sent to the King.”

It seems my unorganized thoughts showed on my face. Seeing my face, the Duke spoke with a faint smile.

“No, since it will nominally be an offering to the King, calling it a bribe would be correct whatever one says.”

Thinking for a moment, the Duke soon corrected his words. A smile still lingered on his lips as he nodded lightly.

“Though the person who will actually use it is me.”

The nominal owner of this much crystal is the King, but the actual user is the Duke. What kind of situation makes that possible?

From the moment I saw the tremendous number of crystals, my mind went blank like a computer fed a wrong command.

No matter how I thought, only one conclusion was derived. A result I had never thought of even once popped up like an error.

An engagement that couldn’t even be called political, demanding only the Duke’s unilateral sacrifice. The Duke standing punishment in the Rose Garden every day to break that engagement. A massive amount of crystal that the Duke will use directly.

But. Surely not.

My lips felt stiff.

A place where magic items made of semi-precious crystal would be used on a massive scale. The landscape drawn in my mind was just ruins.

“Correct.”

I couldn’t say anything, but the Duke nodded at me again. He was still smiling. His tone was light too. So I thought I must have made an error. I must have misunderstood the preconditions.

I barely moved my lips. Following the Duke, I lifted the corners of my mouth.

I ended up imagining something terrible. So I was very surprised. It seems I am very timid. I tried to bring up such a story.

But the Duke was faster than me.

“After winter ends, I will be in the New Continent.”

The Duke’s smile deepened.

I froze again with the expression trying to smile awkwardly. The discrepancy between his expression and his words plunged me into error again.

“You didn’t mishear, Jay.”

The Duke put down the coffee cup he had emptied before I knew it. The thin bone china hit the saucer, making a clear sound. The Duke’s voice rang clearly in my ears like that clear sound.

“I decided to join the 2nd Expeditionary Force.”

It was a declaration of participation in the war.

****

Petan started the war without a declaration; their cowardly tactics. Henian soldiers resisting strongly. Harsh environment, but the brave young blood of Henia fighting valiantly. The front line collapses. Success in recapture! The front line retreats again.

I scanned through the articles I had scrapped over the past year. Articles collected to check market volatility and as educational material for children. From golden prospects strongly denouncing Petan’s irrational start of war and claiming victory lies with Henia nonetheless, to articles gradually approaching reality. Still, since more than half were fiction, information about the real war situation was lines hard to find just by reading.

I taught children to read between the lines and discern real information. Checking the composition homework submitted by children, I commented they were too naive, and received protests asking if I was overly pessimistic.

Reading the collected articles again now, I realized that I was rather quite optimistic back then, far from pessimistic.

I had pondered about gold and gem prices in cases where Henia lost or won the war. Examining the notes written down as thoughts occurred, my brow furrowed automatically.

I had only thought I would be a thorough bystander in the huge show called war.

A bitter smile formed.

If the Duke participates in the war, the Commander-in-Chief of the 2nd Expeditionary Force will instantly change to him. Whether by status or nominally, no one else could replace him.

Now I knew. That was exactly the King’s real aim.

Even if the Duke becomes Commander-in-Chief, the actual authority will still lie with Spes Umbra. Glory for good results will go to him, and responsibility for failure will be borne by the Duke.

Moreover, it’s a battlefield. A place where no one knows when and what will happen. Many lives were already fading away there.

That absurd engagement was an excuse to send the Duke to the battlefield. The Duke couldn’t accept that engagement involving Count Umbra.

Furthermore, just a few years ago, the Duke couldn’t hide his disgust for the Rut. He violently refused approach from both Omegas who could conceive and Betas who couldn’t. The King couldn’t be unaware of that. The person who planted that disgust in the Duke was the King himself.

To refuse the engagement urged by the King, there had to be a proper justification. A reason he couldn’t possibly marry. A national event more important than a royal marriage. A future where life and death cannot be guaranteed.

War became that very justification.

When predicting war at first, the King was definitely optimistic about victory. However, Petan’s surprise attack and the subsequent war situation were completely different from his hopeful predictions.

Wouldn’t he have planned this because of that? Since someone has to take responsibility for failure. While the King himself, who caused the matter, takes no responsibility.

The Duke couldn’t be unaware of what I came up with. Unlike me who knows the King only superficially, the Duke would have seen the King’s essence.

He chose war knowing it.

Perhaps, my existence also became a reason for the Duke to refuse the engagement. At the same time, he would have had to hide the existence of me from the King.

I bit my lip. Otherwise, I felt like I would scream. I wanted to vomit out the churning feelings.

No, no. I had to think. There must be something I have to do, something I can do.

I couldn’t watch something happen to the Duke. I couldn’t let him lose his honor either.

I, couldn’t do that.

So I must prepare.

The Duke himself would prepare sufficiently, but I also had a lot to do.

****

When I handed over the document filled with dense writing, the Duke was puzzled. However, as he read line by line, his face turned stiff.

“Jay.”

“These are essential items.”

Herbs occupied the most items in the list I prepared. Besides that, clean cloth, soap, alcohol, frames to make simple water purifiers, and charcoal were also absolutely necessary.

It was obvious without seeing how terrible field hospitals of this era would be. The latest medical technology was doctors washing hands cleanly and disinfecting instruments before treating patients. It was only recently becoming known that just doing that miraculously increased patient recovery rates. There were far more doctors who didn’t know the importance of disinfection yet.

Would the concept of hygiene exist for doctors in field hospitals in the distant New Continent? I was skeptical. If people’s perceptions and old habits could be changed so easily, Nightingale’s achievements wouldn’t be evaluated as so great.

Direct strategy of the war wasn’t something I could intervene in from the start. Nor did I have the ability to do so.

But there were definitely parts where I could be of help.

“When did you study the rules necessary in field hospitals?”

“Shouldn’t we bring back as many people alive as possible? That’s why I studied.”

Practically, what I studied was about how poor the medical level of the current era is and efficient resource allocation.

Actually, I judged that the Duke wouldn’t be able to command battles from the beginning. As a nominal Commander-in-Chief, the part where he could first stand out was administration, and I thought the more non-combat losses decreased, the greater his position would become.

“Organizing the customer list must have been a big task too.”

The Duke said pointing to the bottom of the list. It was a list of customized gifts for officers. Officers wouldn’t genuinely consider the Duke, who just passed coming of age, as Commander-in-Chief. Especially if they were personnel influenced by the King. Those who could be conciliated had to be brought in, and I wanted to give a little help to the Duke’s choice.

“Quite a few people used borrowed names. I received Philip’s help.”

Turns out a significant number of people were already customers of our watches. Once proxy buyers were identified, finding out their wannabe items was easier than feeding bacon to Ian.

The interesting thing is that all of them purchased the national flag edition. Among company-grade officers, some bought lines below the top-tier model, but from field-grade officers upwards, everyone was a purchaser of the top-tier model without a single exception.

Even that Spes Umbra.

Thinking about the ruby bracelet on his wrist when he invaded this mansion, it was even funny.

Spes Umbra was included in the 2nd Expeditionary Force as scheduled. The injury he suffered from the Duke was nothing significant. Even if it was a big wound to his pride.

I don’t know how much he remembers, but even if he forgot the fact of invading this mansion itself, as long as the Duke participates, he cannot be excluded from the expeditionary force.

“This document you wrote will definitely be of great help to me. However.”

Seeing a part of the document, the Duke hardened his face.

“Jay, why is your name here?”