Chapter 43: The Illusions of the Hunnic King
Following that, Hikigaya and Uldin exchanged a few casual words. After a few drinks, Uldin suddenly took on a bored expression.
"This isn't lively enough. Hey, someone go fetch those women!" he shouted.
Several Huns nearby, who had been swaying unsteadily moments ago, immediately scrambled to their feet and ran out as if their lives depended on it.
A few minutes later, a group of beauties dressed in various styles arrived at the plaza. There were blond-haired, blue-eyed women, as well as those with silver and brown hair. Some were clearly of Roman or Greek descent, while others were Asian. To Hikigaya's utter surprise, there were even Black women among them.
Fortunately, Hikigaya was a person of the future. Although he was slightly startled, he fairly appraised the Black woman as a true beauty. Honestly, the quality of this group of women was incomparable to the dancers from before.
Moreover, he did not believe these were slaves. Several of them possessed an abundant amount of cursed power within their bodies, equivalent to the top-tier Great Knights Hikigaya had encountered in modern society. If Saint Raffaelo, whom he knew before coming here, were brought over, he might not necessarily win in a fight against these women.
The beauties walked directly to the two Campiones. The strongest among them waved away the attending servants, filled two cups with wine, and handed them to the men.
Uldin took the cup and downed it in one go. Hikigaya wasn't overly formal either and took the cup, but he didn't drain it. After all, the brewing level was too poor; his willingness to drink it at all was already giving quite a lot of face.
"Are these also your subordinates?" he asked.
"No, no. They are all my wives," Uldin replied.
It was the expected answer. Judging by his desire to snatch Aisha for his harem, this man—if not a lecherous demon—was at least someone with a great fondness for feminine beauty. There was no reason he would let a batch of "high-quality goods" like this go untasted.
"You certainly have a healthy appetite."
"Brother, don't ask such obvious things, okay? It'll make me embarrassed... Sigh, actually, I know what you want to say." Another beauty refilled Uldin's cup. Uldin tilted his head back, drained the wine once more, and said with a face full of lament: "A harem of this scale is too small for men like us... You must be thinking that, right? However, I have unique thoughts on this matter."
Seeing Hikigaya's "I don't believe a word of your nonsense" expression, Uldin said, "I mean, rather than gathering a crowd of women, it's better to find a few top-tier ones."
Hikigaya looked at Uldin's wives. Since Uldin was speaking Latin, Hikigaya had no idea which specific category of Hunnic family members the word "wife" actually corresponded to here. But Uldin wasn't wrong; even by the standards of a future person, these women could indeed be called peerless beauties.
One beauty sprinkled salt on a piece of roasted meat and handed it to Hikigaya. He thanked her and took it; the taste wasn't bad, certainly better than he had expected.
While Hikigaya tasted the meat, Uldin spoke to him again: "Well, to be honest, I have other wives besides them. By the way, brother, I'll take this chance to introduce them to you."
"This is Krutit," Uldin said, pointing to the strongest golden-haired beauty. "I've left the command of my army to her."
Krutit was dressed in a resolute outfit of armor and a plumed helmet. Her beautiful features possessed a noble grace, and combined with her tall stature, she gave off the aura of a queen. She was a "Big Sister" (Onee-sama) type of great beauty.
Krutit bowed to Hikigaya and then said to Uldin, "Lord Uldin, I will go to prepare now."
"Mhm, go on. We will come tomorrow morning."
Krutit nodded, bowed to Hikigaya once more, and left the scene. Hikigaya saw her mount a Wyvern and fly off toward the north. He noticed that the way Krutit addressed Uldin was "Lord Uldin." This wasn't exactly an intimate form of address, though perhaps it was because an outsider was present and one of her roles was the commander of the Hunnic army.
"By the way, brother. I have a favor to ask of you."
Uldin picked up a pomegranate from the table and began to gnaw on it. While eating, he made a request to Hikigaya. Although Hikigaya was curious how this man's mouth never seemed to stop moving from start to finish, he still adopted an attitude of serious listening.
"Would you be willing to lead my tribe in my stead for a while?"
Uldin's request caught Hikigaya off guard. If this were a modern Campione, things like "factions" or "organizations" couldn't bind them at all. But Uldin was a leader of a Hunnic tribe in the early Middle Ages; his concepts were completely different from the God-slayers of the future. It was just as a modern Chinese person could never possess the clan-based thinking of a medieval Chinese person. These were two entirely different outlooks on life and the world, independent of whether one was a Campione.
"Is there a specific reason?" Hikigaya asked.
"As you said, I also hope that without relying directly on the power obtained from the gods, my tribesmen can capture cities, seize land, and conquer all nations." Uldin's attitude was serious; Hikigaya could see that.
"But I don't seem to be good at these things. Previously, I had someone establish a tribe in the East under my banner, allowing him to sit firmly on the throne of the Chieftain. Unfortunately, that fellow is truly unreliable; I think it will fall before long. My wife Krutit told me that to achieve this, I need to rule all the tribes like a Roman Patriarch."
Uldin spread his hands, looking like he was at a loss for how to handle the situation. "But I thought about it and felt it wasn't that simple. You, however, look like a man of great resourcefulness, so I wanted to ask for your help."
"I'll think about it," Hikigaya said.
He roughly understood Uldin's thoughts. Simply put, Uldin likely hoped his tribe—or rather, his family—could replace the traditional clans and flourish in the long term, specifically under the condition that he might one day no longer be around. In Uldin's view, if a family wanted to continue prospering, it had to possess sufficiently strong military power and a wealthy kingdom. From this perspective, he needed the tribe itself to be strong.
"I am a patient man; I'll give you time to consider," Uldin said happily.
But looking at Uldin's smiling face, Hikigaya felt a deep sense of pity. The Huns would not be the first barbarian tribe to die during a transition, nor the last. Given the nature of the Huns, honestly, no one could save them.
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