Ever since the showing of the movie, Regulus had found himself in a rather… unfamiliar situation-
"It's really weird, the knight order that I knew had changed…"
"Really?"
"I never knew there were so many women in the order…"
Regulus complained to the person who sat before him, Rutherford, his older brother.
"How do you and Rexford deal with this?"
The memory of his return to the base was something he would never forget.
Unlike Rexford whose base of power was in a village at the outskirts of the imperial capital, the two princes who had been drafted for war had their own knight orders which had started off as forces to accompany them during the war but had now become their own base of power after the reduction in military conscription.
Many of the people who served under the two princes retained their employment and chose to stay as soldiers if possible.
Initially, Regulus treated his order equally, everyone went through the same thing whether they were male or female.
To Regulus, order is maintained when equality is truly enforced.
This led to him ignoring petitions for "separate housing", the best he did was to ensure that knights of the opposite sex did not stay in the same room.
Although there were still some problems, he believed that giving separate housing would not only cause a logistic problem but also lead to unpredictable conflict.
Especially when one of the separate housing facilities has something better than the other.
Homogenization was his tool to enforce understanding allowing everyone to "understand each other".
That was one of the problems he had ignored but recently, the problem came to bite him in the ass.
"All you need to do is live in your manor, your palace is still being maintained and your servants are always ready to receive you"
Rutherford answered his brother with a bland tone before turning to the cup of deep black liquid in his hands as he said-
"But I do say, this new drink… coffee is truly addicting"
"Yeah, the common variety that we had during the recording was great but the "fresh brews" that were made with "aging beans" make each cup ha… no wait! I can't return to my palace!"
"Why?"
"... I can't just use my privileges after making my knights suffer…"
Regulus turned his gaze away from Rutherford, indeed, despite how strict and commanding he acted. The Second Prince was not a bad person, in fact, one could even say that he himself was a victim of his own nature.
He was not a hypocrite- at least, that's what he wanted to believe and so, all things he made others do, he made sure that he also followed through with them.
Since he told his knights to endure through the "minor" problems they faced, then he should, as well do the same.
"I see, so what kind of problem are you experiencing?"
"..."
"Proposals are easy to get through, just reject them and people who are more forward with their actions could be repelled by simple apathy. Ignore them without showing a hint of emotion and they would be more devastated than if you were to show anger or intolerance."
Rutherford was not really in the same situation as Rexford. Compared to his youngest brother who had an unnatural charm that seemed to attract any kind of woman, Rutherford was the type who attracted women who chase after power.
As such, his experience fell within the realms of rejecting materialistic women. Unfortunately, he did not know that Regulus was not troubled by the same type of woman as those he was familiar with.
"I already did that, long before this problem…"
"Huh? So what's the issue?"
"They're calling me Sir Claude"
"..."
Although the viewing of the movie was reserved for nobles, many of the knights and support staff that assisted in the rapid filming of the movie were from the knights under Regulus and Rutherford. As a reward for their help, the knights were allowed to view the movie even without the approval of the Emperor.
Yes, the emperor had immediately banned the distribution and spread of the movie.
Only the nobles who participated in the ball are allowed to watch it and this led to it being treated as a "special privilege" by some.
Though the problem was not the distribution of the movie, few were aware of the enticement of the movie and as such chalked it up to a mere "performance" made by the hedonistic third prince.
Unfortunately, Rexford's reputation did not really improve all that much.
Although his people's respect and support of him grew stronger with each passing day, especially after he unveiled "coffee" and the movie started being shown to his people, the rest of the population remained woefully unaware of the great movie that had been created in less than a month.
That said, while the people under Rexford simply increased their loyalty and the people under Rutherford took a liking to teasing "Commander Leon", Regulus… he was experiencing a different problem.
To the knights under Regulus, their commander, the Second Prince was a cold and strong man.
A respectable leader who had a heart of ice and a will of steel.
Yet… the moment they saw their respected leader as "Sir Claude", things changed.
If it was only the teasing from the men, Regulus could have endured but…
"Those women… I thought they were earnest, prideful and pure! But… after they watched the movie… for some reason, they started to wear more revealing clothing. The men even used excuses like "survival training" or just out right "camping" to leave the barracks"
"Just enforce an order, don't let them leave"
"... I can't"
"Huh?"
"Even if I issue a command, for some reason, they all turned against me- normally I'd have a debate and the sides would be split 50/50 and I would end up breaking the tie… yet- now, whenever I try to keep the men in the barracks…"
"Everyone unites against you?"
"..."
Rutherford could immediately grasp the troubles his little brother was experiencing. Unfortunately, that was a battlefield he knew nothing about.
"You better ask Rexford for help, I can't give you any worthwhile advice given your situation"
Aware of his own shortcomings, Rutherford did not try to give any worthless advice and immediately threw Regulus towards someone who could.
"Where is he then?"
But Regulus had long planned to meet with Rexford but could not find him anywhere. His head maid Anne was at the village and many of his people were working hard and yet none of them saw him.
Fortunately, Regulus spotted Rutherford who had recently turned the Ford Village into his favorite spot to unwind. Specifically he went around drinking coffee in one of the many "Cafe's" within the village.
"... in his palace", Rutherford did not try to hide it, he stated it outright where Rexford was and Regulus-
"Then I'll-"
Immediately tried to rush towards Rexford's palace but Rutherford stopped him with a few words.
"With Delilah and Ortrun, apparently he also got himself entangled with a Countess from the Martell Duchy"
Regulus was not an innocent boy, he knew fully well what it meant for his little brother to have women home. In fact, staying at his palace in the middle of the day was already a sign of what the kid was up to.
As such, instead of thinking of "what he was doing?", the first thing that came to Regulus' mind was-
"... when?"
When did he get acquainted with a random Countess?
Although not a low rank, the title of Countess, especially in the Martell Duchy was not that high, it was a rank given to high ranking nobles who had small pieces of land, those that did not have vast territories and whose income did not come from taxes.
They were considered "mercantile" nobles and worked directly under the Martell house.
But that was not the problem, the problem was that Rutherford and Regulus were keeping a close eye on the women their brother took in.
It was not for any nefarious reasons but instead a "protective measure", after all, the "honey trap" had killed the most nobles during the war. Moreover, since a "human-like appearance" is worthless to high ranking nobles if their partner did not bear titan blood, if the goal was simple pleasure, even high ranking nobles would prefer human women.
Rexford may not be as gullible as the fallen nobles, but he was still someone who could easily be fooled with pleasantries and false images. The last thing they want to happen is for Rexford to be harmed or at worse, perish due to chasing after an assassin.
Yet, even Regulus had no record of "a noble from Martell", this is because Rexford was especially keen on avoiding noble ladies. Yet he somehow got into an altercation with a noble who was not one of his wife candidates?
The information alone nearly made Regulus forget his purpose, yet the answer to his question was even more shocking…
"Last night"
"..."
"That's what happens when your only tool of trade is Bedroom Politics, but if you want to find a way to resolve your issues, then you better consult with the most infamous master of the craft"
Regulus did not know what to say, all he could do was breath in a deep sigh before exhaling deeply.
"I guess I'll have to endure…"
The second prince could only give up, with his hope gone for now, all he could do was get through the days before he could meet his brother.
"If you do find yourself impregnating someone, don't worry about marriage. I've already set something up, this way I could take the seat of the emperor without needing to deal with a harem. I only need one wife, the rest could be left up to you and Rexford"
Rutherford calmly replied to Regulus whose gaze sharpened at his eldest brother's words.
"I may be having some worries but brother… I don't know what kind of deal you struck with the witch but if it harms Rexford…"
"Calm down Regulus, I've spent most of my life trying to protect Rexford, now, I realized that doing so only made him bolder. But… bravery without ability is simple recklessness right brother? I can't let Rexford jump into a pit of fire because he never knew what it felt like to get burned
"..."
Regulus did not answer, he understood what Rutherford meant, especially after Rexford started to make some pretty large steps.
Before, people would describe him as selfish, for he had the ability but lacked the courage to use it. Now, despite gaining courage, he had gained too much that it went over his head.
"This will only tighten the net that surrounds him"
"Better than waiting for the net to turn into a noose around his neck"
"..."
Regulus paused, he took another sip of the coffee-
'Indeed, if he made slow and steady steps, careful actions over the years he spent fooling around. He could have prevented those two monstrosities from gaining power and influence… alas.'
Regulus could only pray that his brother was doing alright as he watched the people of Ford Village work hard for their lord.
…
Meanwhile, in Rexford Palace…
"You three really… yesterday it was Anne, Ratna and Elise, now…"
Rexford gazed down at his partner, the buddy who helped him get through this ordeal.
'We did it partner- we slayed the dragon, subjugated the evil witch and captured a fallen angel on the side~'
He mused as he turned his head to look at the three women who were passed out on the bed.
"I may not be able to match the three of you in combat, politics or any other important work… but when it comes to "bed wars"? I'm never gonna be taken down by amateurs- you better believe it!"
Rexford punched the air, his fist directed at empty space as he smiled, picturing his own image at the moment.
But the pride he felt immediately dispersed as he felt a shiver run down his spine, not because of someone's stare but out of pure cringe.
It was the classic "friendly fire" that his country in his past life was a master of being on the receiving end of. But, despite having some tolerance to it, that did not mean that it had no effect.
"Good thing they were all knocked out", he muttered under his breath but-
"Was that part of your next movie master?"
The blonde beauty Bedelia appeared out of nowhere, standing next to him. Rexford did not even ask how she was there as he immediately fell on his knees.
'It's over…'