Chapter 467: So I’m Better Than Nothing_I Woke Up Piloting the Strongest Starship, so I Became a Space Mercenary

Chapter 467: So I’m Better Than Nothing

 The Imperial Castle was extremely vast. The area covered by this building… no, calling it a building might be misleading. A structure? Anyway, the area covered by the Imperial Castle was incrediblyrge. I heard that it would take several days to walk from one end to the other.

 Therefore, within the Imperial Castle, existed several dedicated means of transportation. These included things like trains and flying taxis. However, this time, our destination was a ce that could be reached in a few minutes on foot without using such transportation.

 「This area is still part of the Imperial Army’s district, right?」

 「Yes. My family has held important military positions for generations, so we have been granted a private space in this district.」

 「Like a vacation home?」

 「It’s not as morous as that. It’s just a space intended to make it easier to be on duty at all times so we can respond immediately.」

 「I see…?」

 In other words, it’s a slightly luxurious private nap space set up at the workce…? So, the Imperial Army was an abusive megacorporation all this time… No, It’s probably something different.

 As I listened to Serena’s exnation, we arrived at a gate where a soldier who was clearly not of the Imperial Army was standing guard. How did I know he was different? For starters, the uniform was different. It was a uniform that had a ceremonial feel to it, it looked quite expensive with a lot of glittering decorations. You could say it had a sense of luxury.「Didn’t you say it wasn’t morous?」

 「If it were too shabby, that would be inconvenient in its own way… We will pass through.」

 「Yes, please go ahead!」

 We passed through the checkpoint, saluted by soldiers who appeared to be private guards of Marquis Holz House and stepped into the so-called private section of the Holz household.

 「…You said it wasn’t morous.」

 「By the standards of the imperial capital, this is quite modest, really.」

 Serena sighed in response to myment. The ce was clearly luxurious: an antique-looking wooden floor with a pristine carpet, historic-lookingmps on the ceiling, expensive-looking furniture and paintings, and vases filled with what were presumably real flowers. It was undoubtedly an opulent ce that made even high-end hotels look dingy byparison. If this is considered modest, I can’t even imagine what a ce she considers luxurious must look like. Would it be so dazzling that I couldn’t keep my eyes open?

 「It has a calming atmosphere.」

 「This is calming for you…?」

 「Kugi, you’re quite the character.」

 Mimi and Elma were taken aback and a bit exasperated by Kugi, who was leisurely wagging her tail. To think that at first, she was flustered by staying in a slightly upscale hotel… look at her now,pletely unperturbed by this level of luxury. This mental fortitude must be thanks to the training to be a psionic user… No, maybe Kugi was just naturally like this. Yeah, that must be it.

 「I heard Chris is already here.」

 「Yes, it seems she has arrived with two guards. They should be in the reception room.」

 With that, Serena walked ahead confidently without hesitation. This ce must feel like home to her. Well, it’s situated within the military district, and she likely uses this private section often when staying in the imperial capital.

 We passed a few maids as we headed deeper into the section, and Serena finally stopped in front of a door. She knocked three times.

 「It’s Serena. I’ming in.」

 「Go ahead.」

 A familiar voice came from the other side of the door. Following Serena into the reception room, I saw Chris. She stood up from the sofa and turned her gaze toward us with a smile.

 「It seems the inquiry ended without any issues. I’m relieved.」

 「Yeah, somehow. It felt like an invisible hand from way up high was involved though…」

 I nced at Serena as I said this. She closed her eyes and shrugged. It seemed she didn’t know anything about it, but herck of denial suggested she had simr suspicions.

 「Dad might know something about it. By the way, is that person Christina’s guard?」

 「Yes. Edeltrud, please introduce yourself.」

 「Yes, Lady Christina. I am Edeltrud of the Krause Baron House, a vassal of the Dareinwald Earl House. Lady Serena, Lord Hiro, and everyone else, it is a pleasure to meet you.」

 Chris’s female knight escort made a graceful bow as she introduced herself. She was a beautiful woman with dark brown, almost ck, curly hair that reached her shoulders. She appeared to be human and seemed a bit younger than me… maybe quite a bit younger? Perhaps around twenty years old or so.

 「A vassal… um, what was that again? Like a subordinate in a noble sense or something?」

 「That’s about right. The Dareinwald Earl House is a local lord that owns multiple star systems. Underneath us are noble families that manage one or several of our star systems or support the administration of the Dareinwald Earl House. These noble families are called vassals. The Dareinwald Earl House acts as the leader and protects the vassal families and the vassals support us.」

 「I see.」

 So, the Dareinwald Earl House basically acts like a parentpany, overseeing multiple noble families like subsidiaries? Well, I get the rtionship between Chris and Edeltrud now. It’s like a subsidiary’s president’s daughter is apanying the heir of the parentpany as a bodyguard. As for Edeltrud’s fighting skills… well, honestly, they don’t seem very good. Chris might actually be stronger than her. This is probably because Chris has undergone more extensive physical enhancements, just my hunch though.

 「Hiro-sama, sit here. Everyone else take a sit as well, please.」

 「Thank you.」

 Chris moved aside slightly and patted the spot where she had been sitting, so I obediently sat there. Hmm, the seat is warm. I can feel Chris’s warmth. Serena was about to sit next to me on the opposite side of Chris, but then she seemed to remember something and instead sat across the table from us. Oh, right. If Serena’s father ising, it wouldn’t be appropriate for her to sit next to me. In the end, Mimi, prompted by Serena’s gestures, sat next to me, and Elma sat beside her. Kugi took the seat next to Chris. Even with five people sitting, this sofa still has some space left. It’s prettyfortable too, as expected of a marquis’s household. They use good furniture.

 The maids efficiently served everyone what appeared to be very high-quality tea. As we sipped our tea and talked with Chris about the inquiry for a while, there was a knock on the door.

 「Come in.」

 A moment after Serena responded, the door opened, and everyone except Kugi and me stood up. Wait, is that the correct manner here? I hurriedly stood up to greet the neer, and I noticed that Kugi had also somehow managed to stand up in the meantime.

 「Hello, everyone. Nice to see you again. Please, have a seat.」

 The person who urged us to sit was the one who had chaired the inquiry earlier. So, this man is Serena’s Dad. Before he could say anything, the maids promptly reced all our tea. They changed the teacups and everything without making a sound or seeming hurried. Maids really are impressive.

 「Although we met earlier, I didn’t introduce myself. I am Laurenz Holz, the head of the Holz Marquis House. It’s a pleasure, Captain.」

 「The pleasure is mine. However, I must admit, I am not well-versed in the etiquette appropriate for interacting with a noble of your stature, Marquis. I will do my best to avoid any rudeness, but I ask for your understanding in advance.」

 「Ah, there’s no need to worry about that. I am a military man myself. If I worried about such things, I wouldn’t be able to receive reports from my subordinates. While formalities may be necessary in official settings, this is a private asion. Feel free to speak normally.」

 「Thank you very much.」

 As I bowed my head slightly to thank him, I secretly observed the smiling Marquis Laurenz Holz. He was a handsome middle-aged man with short-cropped blonde hair and blue eyes. He looked quite young—almost like there was no more than a ten-year age difference between us. His youthful appearance was probably due to the enhancement treatments that nobles receive, or some form of anti-aging technique… Nobles are really something.

 After that, I introduced Mimi and the others.

 「Uh…?」

 「Well, I mean, she’s really the spitting image of her…」

 Laurenz seemed a bit taken aback and was even sweating a little as he looked at Mimi. Well, she does look exactly like Princess Luciada. Given that she’s been more active publiclytely, it wouldn’t be surprising if the head of the Holz House had met her in person.

 「Ahem. Well, the reason I called this meeting and gathered you all here is none other than to talk about the future of my foolish daughter.」

 「Isn’t calling me ‘foolish daughter’ a bit harsh?」

 「Serena, you literally stomped on every marriage proposal Hilde and I arranged for you, joined the military on your own, made a name for yourself as a bravemander, and even now, you have no known lover or significant other. For a typical noble daughter, this behavior warrants being called a foolish daughter.」

 「…」

 This is how you shut up someone, everyone. Serena was at a loss for words, her face contorting as if she had swallowed a bitter insect.

 「While female officers in the Imperial Army are not umon, the elite female officers usually are assigned to the Imperial Guard. Yet, she specifically requested to be assigned to a dangerous frontier fleet and even used her achievements to form the Independent Mobile Anti-Pirate Fleet, engaging in bloody battles all over the Empire. Did you know, Captain? In the circles of Imperial nobles, my daughter is known as the ‘Mad Dog of the Holz House,’ the ‘Bloodstained Maiden,’ and the ‘Pirate Eater.’ These are hardly the nicknames an unmarried noblewoman should have.」

 「That’s a bit hard toment on.」

 Honestly, there’s nothing I can deny here. I seem to recall stories about her beating down every potential marriage candidate she was presented with.

 「Well, and then you came along. You might hold only an honorary title, but you are still a Viscount and have a good rtionship with the military. Among the notoriously difficult tinum Rankers, you are considered quite reasonable. The fact that you yed a significant role in quelling the rebellion of the Ixamal Earl House with Serena, and you have worked with her multiple times before, shows that you are skilled enough for her to trust you.」

 Here ites. This is it. The ‘but’ ising. I’m sure of it. He’s about to add some criticism here.

 「It’s truly wonderful. I’m counting on you to take care of her from now on. Forming a connection with the Dareinwald Earl House is excellent as well.」

 「Uh, what? Oh, thank you?」

 「You seem surprised. Think about it. Serena is beautiful andpetent, but her standards are exceptionally high. At her age, not having a fiancé or even a marriage prospect is… well, you understand, right?」

 The marquis looked at me with a troubled expression, seeking my agreement, while his daughter, blushing furiously, tried to smack him. This guy is deftly avoiding her blows without even looking, that’s really impressive, man.

 「That’s why, from my perspective, I’m quite positive about this arrangement. My wife feels the same way. She’s relieved that someone capable of managing Serena has finally appeared. Of course, from the standpoint of the Marquis House’s head, you may not be the ideal match for my daughter. But you are a good one. It’s better than nothing.」

 「So I’m better than nothing.」

 「Yes, well, you’re not a formal noble. However, you have undeniable military aplishments and achievements. His Majesty holds you in high regard. And…」

 「And?」

 「In the long history of the Empire, sometimes strange individuals appear, you could call them gifted nobodies or children of destiny, if you will. When they appeared, they became formidable allies or catastrophic enemies. The Holz Marquis House has records of such individuals in its history.」

 「Ah… I see.」

 I nced at Kugi, who looked back at me. I see, the individuals Marquis Holz is talking about are ‘them’.

 「Therefore, you may proceed with your rtionship with Serena. We will start by announcing your engagement first, I suppose? Currently, you’re married to Mimi-sam… Mimi-san, right? There are special provisions for couples when one bes a noble after marriage. You can make use of those. The actual marriage will be in about two years, I think, we have to wait until Lady Christinaes of age.」

 「I see… Wait, isn’t Chris already of age?」

 I looked at Chris, who had a somewhat forced smile. She is definitely trying to y it off.

 「If Lady Christina were amoner, yes. But noblese of age three yearster thanmoners. It’s mostly a formality, but having the next Countess Dareinwald pregnant beforeing of age would be problematic.」

 「…Chris?」

 Chris turned her head away from me, avoiding my gaze. Hey, look at me when I’m talking to you!

 「Well, two years will pass quickly. We’ll need that time to prepare for the wedding. Also, you need to greet the Willrose Viscount House properly. The three families will need to coborate to organize the ceremony.」

 Laurenz watched us with a warm smile while I struggled to get Chris to look at me. Chris clung to Kugi, burying her face in Kugi’s chest, refusing to confront me. Naughty girls who tell lies need to be punished. Kugi, stop protecting Chris by hugging her head.

AliNovel

Chapter 467: So I’m Better Than Nothing