The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I'm a "Farmer", Not a Demon King! ~ - Chapter 470

The Strongest Farmer in Another World ~I’m a “Farmer”, Not a Demon King! ~

Chapter 470   About going to the Holy Kingdom

“So, what’s your intention—”

“Vesnar-kun! What are you thinking!? Going to the Holy Kingdom… it’s dangerous!”

“Mom…”

After the Heroes had left, my father began talking to me, but my mother rushed in from the corridor beside the throne, hugging me and interrupting.

“I know it’s dangerous. But, regarding the Sacred Tree, I need to see what’s going on firsthand. Whether I can solve it or not, I have to check the situation. If I ignore it now and the same thing happens to Flora later, this country will perish. So, I need to know what’s happening in other countries while it’s still an external issue. That’s what I believe is my role as the king.”

I suspect that the recent events are a consequence of cutting down the Sacred Tree, but that’s just my speculation. If it’s something different, the issues might not manifest for Flora this time. If that happens, it’ll be too late to come up with a solution. I need to find fragments of a solution now, while I can still perceive it as an external event.

“But… it’s dangerous. It’s not just ‘it might be dangerous,’ but there are people who are really targeting you. Moreover, it’s not just individuals; it’s a large group represented by an entire country.”

I understand. Even so, I want to go—or rather, I have to go. It connects to protecting this country, and I believe it’s my duty as the king.

Of course, it’s my perspective, and there are still aspects where I lack the experience of being a king, so my viewpoint might be flawed. If everyone here thinks it’s a bad idea, I’m willing to give up. Nevertheless, if there’s only mild opposition, I intend to go, and ideally, I’d like everyone’s support.

“Then I’m going too! I’ll protect you no matter what!”

Whether my mom understood that I wouldn’t change my mind or not, she showed determination like that.

But…

“No, that’s a bit… not okay, isn’t it?”

“Why? Don’t you like me…?”

“It’s not that, but… Mom, you’re technically not affiliated with Karakas; you’re still part of the kingdom, right? At least officially, it’s considered a temporary assignment from the kingdom. Taking someone like you to another country is not possible.”

“But… then take this person with you! In that case, no matter what comes at you, it’ll be okay!”

With a somewhat teary expression, my mom pointed at my dad while saying that.

But that wouldn’t work either.

“That won’t work either. Taking dad along would indeed solve the problem of my safety. However, it would leave the defense of this country weakened. If both dad and I are away, and if this town has to face someone like the Demon King, a dragon, or a giant, thinking about it, I can’t feel at ease going out.”

Maybe it won’t happen, likely it won’t happen, but it’s not a certainty. While we’re absent, there’s a chance that another country might attack. They might even send in special forces. Those individuals might target something important to threaten me. At that time, having no one to protect my mom would be troublesome.

However, if my dad is there, he would protect her no matter what. Not for my sake but for his own. After all, she’s his wife.

“Rieta, any further involvement from this could be a hindrance. As a parent, I won’t say not to worry, but interfering with his progress is the last thing we want.”

“…Right, yeah. That’s true… I’m sorry.”

With clear words from my dad, my mom, looking a bit dejected, left the room, and my dad, after giving me a nod, followed after her.

“So, what’s the plan?”

I asked Granny and Edward who were still present at the scene, trying to understand their thoughts and ideally seeking their approval as well.

“Regardless of what to do, it’s pretty much settled that you’re going, right?”

“Well, yeah. It’s true I want to see how things unfold, and Flora wants to go.”

“Is that the only reason to plunge into danger? Quite astonishing. Although, it’s unsettling since you have the power to do so.”

Edward, hearing the reason I mentioned, shrugged as if amazed.

“Are you against it?”

“If you think about sending your own country’s king into an enemy nation, anyone would be against it. However, isn’t it beneficial?”

“Is it okay?”

“Yes. It benefits m— I mean, us.”

Now, he was about to say, “It benefits me.” Well, if it ultimately benefits the country, I guess it’s fine.

“So, is it safe to assume you’re in favor? …But even if we decide to go, it’s quite impossible for one person to go alone, right?”

“Obviously, right? If the lad goes alone, it’s not just a matter of being underestimated.”

“That’s right. An escort for the diplomatic mission. Besides, considering a king from a country is going, we would need at least three hundred people to take care of everything.”

“Three hundred… Do we really need that many?”

Honestly, I hadn’t expected it to be such a large group. I thought we’d bring dozens at most— maybe a hundred at most. Triple that…

“This is still on the low side. After all, it’s not every day that a king ventures into another country, especially one with whom we can’t deny having hostilities. While it wouldn’t be unreasonable to have a thousand guards in such a situation, being members of Karakas, their individual strength surpasses that of others, allowing us to reduce the numbers.”

“Well, those folks in Karakas are desperate to survive, honing their skills. Orphans, in particular, have nothing else to rely on. Even those who came from outside and managed to survive here would need a considerable amount of strength, and those who came fleeing would only survive if they possessed enough power to ward off pursuers. Because of that, they’re considerably stronger compared to folks in other peaceful cities. In other cities, someone on the fifth rank would be considered quite powerful, but here, it’s the seventh rank that starts to be recognized as strong.”

“Of course, having too many would likely draw complaints from the other side. I don’t intend to let in a thousand people, of course.”

“Well, I understand bringing a lot, but can I leave the personnel selection to you? I have no idea who to bring.”

“Considering the circumstances, you have the perfect selection right there.”

While pointing towards Granny, Edward said so. But is Granny really a ‘perfect selection’?

“Right there… you mean Granny?”

Appearance-wise, it seems difficult for her to move long distances. Well, since transportation is mostly done using vehicles, it should be okay — wait, wasn’t she not really an ‘old lady’? If that’s the case, then it should be fine, right?

“Yes, you may have forgotten, but Carmena-san is the ‘Minister of Foreign Affairs.’ It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she’s a suitable choice. In fact, what’s the point of her not participating in this situation?”

“Yeah, I suppose. Although I usually help out in various departments, it’s just a little bit. It’s not like I’m doing a decent job as a superior like you, Ed-boy. Oh, recently, I’ve been your mother’s tea-drinking companion. That’s also considered part of being a ‘friendly envoy,’ and it’s not entirely unrelated to foreign affairs, right? Well, it’s just a small part of the job anyway.”

Ah, come to think of it, that’s the kind of role she had.

This country doesn’t have many connections with other nations, and Carmena’s job mostly involves visiting Lilia’s hometown, talking with Leireine, and dealing with envoys coming from Zaviet. However, that’s just to pass the time. Afterward, she pops into other departments and helps out a bit. It seems like she’s returning to her own base to do something, but that’s how much free time she has.

“I see. But, even if that’s the case, are you okay with this? There will be negotiations, and it seems like it’s in your field.”

Bringing in Granny is fine, but I feel like Edward would be more interested in going. After all, this time, they’ll likely discuss buying and selling food, and money will be involved. There’s no reason for this guy not to want to participate. Well, if they both leave, it’ll be a bit troublesome. I’d like at least one of them to stay.

“Well, yes. Honestly, I’d like to speak directly and negotiate, but unfortunately, I lack the power to do so.”

“Power?”

“Yes, that’s right. I’ll probably encounter some danger on the other side, but I don’t have enough confidence that I can survive that. I don’t possess the strength to be certain of surviving such situations.”

“But, weren’t you a boss? Even if you’re inferior to Dad and us in strength, you should be able to fight to some extent, right?”

I knew this guy didn’t have as much power as the other bosses, and he climbed the ranks more with money. However, he was still one of the bosses who managed a section in Karakas. It’s unthinkable that he has no power at all. If he really had no power, he would have been robbed of his money and everything else.

So, at least, he should have enough strength to repel an attack by a group of Rank 7. However, Edward shook his head at my words.

“I see you don’t understand. My strength lies in using money to acquire numerous weapons, armor, and magical tools, as well as hiring mercenaries. It’s useful for base defense, but when it comes to traveling far, especially to an enemy nation… Moreover, this time is a hostile country. Even if I were to bring someone along, I wouldn’t be able to bring many, and my military strength is severely lacking. Going in such a situation might lead to my death, so I can’t allow that.”

“I see, it’s about the numbers. Overwhelm them with sheer force. That makes it tough, huh?”

This time, he can’t bring extra people for the journey to another country. Therefore, even if he has magical tools, he may not be able to fully utilize them. There’s a considerable possibility that he won’t be able to use them effectively due to the constraints of not being able to bring extra people.

“In addition, Carmena-san’s abilities will be useful this time.”

“Granny’s… enchantment?”

“Yes. If she can enchant someone from the Holy Kingdom, negotiations regarding food should go well, and can be used as a spy afterward. Moreover, she might be useful as a deterrent in case something happens.”

Certainly, if she can enchant someone, negotiations won’t be a problem. They probably have countermeasures, but Granny’s experience might allow her to handle it well.

“Relying solely on my abilities for information gathering, boy, is not ideal. In times like this, when something like this happens, information may not come in, so isn’t it time to prepare another means?”

“But there are already people infiltrating, right?”

The reason we know about information from the other side is that they have informed us. Moreover, they have increased their numbers based on this report, and we can leave information gathering to them.

“Yes, they are there. However, they are merely ordinary believers or collaborators. There are no high-ranking individuals who can be moved conveniently on our side.”

Ah… I see. Even if we send someone from here, it doesn’t mean they can infiltrate the upper echelons of the Holy Kingdom. In Edward’s case, he might have personal connections, but it’s not a relationship where they conveniently listen to each other. It’s probably a relationship where they mutually use each other for money and benefits.

Because of that, it might be a good idea to prepare someone “usable” in the upper echelons at this point.

“Well then, I’ll leave the selection of personnel to you. Just prepare someone suitable.”

With that, my decision to go to the Holy Kingdom is settled. Now, I just have to wait for the meeting with the hero in three days.

… Since I have some time, maybe I should keep an eye on the heroes for safety reasons?