Saria-kyun, the Great King of the Ogre God Nation, looked utterly appalled. "There was a chance we could have ended up like this too..." he muttered.
I tried to explain that he was wrong; the Ogre God Nation had actually made an effort to talk. As long as it was just a cultural divide, we could find common ground through mutual understanding. I had only cut Magellan off because they had zero intention of talking in the first place.
If the Ogre God Nation had shouted, "Hey, look at these weaklings! Let’s make ’em slaves! Woo-hoo!" during our first encounter, they’d probably be extinct by now.
...Wait, that was exactly what happened with the Proone.
The ones who started with hostility from the first move... the Proone, the Ghouls, the Pirate Guild... they were all either destroyed or ended up as my underlings. The Ghouls were only a step away from total annihilation, though.
But in the Proone's case, if their country hadn't fallen, the entire species was destined to die out from brain disease caused by cannibalism. Since coming under our protection, they were now the picture of health.
The Pirate Guild became my subordinates, and most of them had transitioned to honest work in the shipping industry or as private security. We even established laws in Chronos and Latarnia for the adult industry. We ensured that people couldn't just be discarded if they fell ill. We classified those illnesses as industrial accidents and cracked down on violators. We managed shops to prevent them from overcharging, and passed laws stating that if labor was forced as collateral for a debt, the debt itself was void.
Sure, new criminal elements would always surface, but having legitimate businesses made a world of difference.
Thinking about it that way, I was glad I’d tolerated the Latarnian King’s initial recklessness when he wiped out the Proone. Because I’d held back and prioritized learning their culture first—asking for understanding by saying, "This is our way"—we’d been able to build a friendship.
The other side had destroyed the Proone according to their own laws. By analyzing Latarnia's laws, I’d been able to say, "Fine, we’ll take the children under our wing."
Communication really was important. We’d even left the door open for dialogue with the Zen God Race.
Anyway, it was time for the meeting with the Magellan national leaders and the military. I decided to ignore the capital entirely.
The attendees were planetary mayors and prefectural governors—leaders who managed clusters of worlds. Only about half of them were still alive. Apparently, the "important" people had abandoned the citizens and fled early!
Looking at this, I realized that Chronos—where the upper management had stayed until they were wiped out—actually had a high level of civic virtue. Our military had fought to the last man.
And yet, I was still the one who had to talk to these high-ranking survivors. Poor me!
So, I decided to open with a single declaration.
"First, let me be clear: we nobles are creatures who live by honor... or rather, pride. From this moment on, anyone who tried to escape before their citizens is disqualified from this meeting."
It was pure idealism, of course. Even I would prioritize my wifey if I had to weigh her against the citizenry. But if it were a choice between my own life and the citizens? I’d prioritize the people. Still, I said it with a perfectly straight face.
That was the current state of the Galactic Empire and the Grand Duchy of Chronos. Nobles existed to die for the sake of their principles!
Upon hearing that, even among the half that remained, another half of the council members looked at me with expressions of utter disbelief.
"I am dead serious. If I weren’t, Chronos wouldn't have a noble system in the first place. A noble is someone who shares the destiny of their land."
The second they realized I wasn't joking, several local heads disconnected their feeds. Idiots! I’d just put them on a watch list.
The remaining leaders looked like they were on death’s door. I actually respected the first Mayor I’d met. He’d worked in a shelter alongside his people, putting their needs above his own. I almost wanted men like him in my nobility. Or at least, they deserved treatment above that of a regular citizen—provided they were the type who worked themselves to death during an emergency.
I was just saying that anyone who wasn't like that could rot. Having nearly starved to death in Chronos myself, I was serious about this.
"I judge those of you remaining to be worthy of our cooperation."
When I smiled, the leaders visibly flinched.
Then, one person—a female prefectural governor, if I recalled correctly—raised her hand. She looked me straight in the eye through the remote feed.
"Our prefecture wishes for annexation by the Grand Duchy of Chronos."
Eh, I don't want it. The words almost slipped out. But I couldn't make that call alone.
"May I take that back for internal discussion?"
"Yes... I suppose that is only natural."
Then, several more governors raised their hands.
"O-Our prefecture also begs for annexation! We’re at our limit!"
I decided to give them a warning just in case.
"I’ll tell you now... being annexed doesn't mean you governors automatically become nobles."
"That doesn't matter! Please, just help the citizens!"
If they were willing to go that far, even if it was just words... well, I suppose I could put it before the parliament. Personally, I was against it. Expansionism wasn't a good look; it would make everyone around us wary. I’d been against becoming the King of Chronos for the same reason.
Still, if the parliament or the civil service judged it to be beneficial, I’d follow through. That was the duty of an Archduke.
I patched in the lines to Latarnia and the Taikyoku Nation. Saria-kyun was sitting this one out since his country didn't share a border here.
"What do your nations think about Chronos annexing these territories?"
The King of Latarnia didn't hesitate. "We fully support it. If it’s under Chronos’s administration, it will be much easier for the Latarnia Bank to expand there."
As for Shiyun...
"Our country doesn't have the resources to manage more territory. We would prefer to ask Chronos to handle it."
"But this could lead to war with the remaining Magellan forces," I pointed out.
The Magellan military representative, who had been silent until then, finally spoke up in a heavy tone.
"Our army has been decimated."
"Pardon?" That was news to me.
"We can no longer function as a nation..."
"We don't operate under civilian control," I countered. "As the Archduke, I am a soldier myself. Are you truly okay with that?"
"By all means... we beg you to incorporate us into the Grand Duchy of Chronos Army... please..."
Ah, yeah. His spirit was completely broken. They’d been one-sidedly humiliated.
I really hated this. It felt like a blatant invasion—like looting a house while it was still on fire. This was the kind of thing that caused diplomatic headaches later. I wanted to avoid it if possible. Throwing money at the problem only went so far, and I preferred to keep my nation compact.
Still, if they were running an incompetent administrative dystopia that couldn't even maintain basic infrastructure, there had to be a serious reason for it.
Well, the rest was up to the Chronos parliament. I decided I would talk it over with my wifey later. And the Fairy.
"Fairy! Give me a way out of this responsibility!"
"There isn't one. You always do things too well, Leo-kun."
Didn't she seem a bit cold? Hey, what gives!?
"Think about it! If you show off that noble pride to people on the brink of extinction... of course they're going to want to become children of Chronos!"
...I was the cause!?