A Flat-Chest Believer Reincarnated in a World Where Women with Small Breasts Aren't Treated as Women ~ I Ended Up with a Flat-Chested Harem. - Chapter 61

The Deputy Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Griffis, Count Jigstha, Kobbass Jigstha, was waiting for someone in his office late at night.

Eventually, footsteps approached, and a knock sounded at the door.

“This is Zowan.”

“Come in.”

The door opened, and a middle-aged man with black hair entered. His build was solid, and his face was stern. He was a friend of Count Jigstha and served as a military officer for the royal family.

“What brings me here tonight, Deputy Prime Minister?”

The man deliberately used the title, which Jigstha disliked, in an exaggerated manner.

“Enough of that…”

The position of Deputy Prime Minister was a contentious one, established under the current king. To put it simply, the role was to “handle the actual duties the Prime Minister couldn’t while focusing on pleasing the king.” It was a thankless role, and it had left Count Jigstha’s hair completely white.

“My apologies. So, what’s the matter, Kobbass?”

“I need your opinion. I received a report from the intelligence department. It seems mass production of weapons has begun in the Gustique territory within the Kingdom of Rolique. This information comes through multiple channels and is almost certainly accurate.”

Zowan made a grim face. It was not welcome news.

Nine years ago, the Kingdom of Griffis had launched a surprise attack on the Kingdom of Rolique, with whom it shared a border to the east. While they deployed a massive force and inflicted significant damage on the western lords of Rolique, they suffered defeat against Rolique’s main army at the Battle of the Hilwan Plains and were forced to retreat.

Afterward, Rolique demanded reparations, which Griffis completely ignored, leading to the current state of affairs.

It appeared that Rolique was now preparing for retaliatory action against Griffis.

At the center of these preparations was the powerful Gustique family. Somehow, they had managed to domestically produce cotton, significantly increase iron production, and improve wheat yields. With the surplus, they were even training some of their farmers as soldiers.

The head of the Gustique family at the time had died in the Battle of the Hilwan Plains. Their hatred for Griffis was entirely justified.

“The intent of the Gustique family is firm.”

Count Jigstha’s observation was met with a skeptical expression from Zowan.

“It’s generally understood within the Kingdom of Rolique that the Gustique family is on the side of maintaining the status quo and opposes Duke Manjula, who is advocating for retaliation against Griffis.”

“That’s nonsense. While there may be differences in opinion on the timing of retaliation, their goals are aligned. Otherwise, the Gustique family wouldn’t be running their territory with such a heavy military focus.”

The Gustique family was pouring their profits from cotton into steel production, running deficits as they ramped up their output of steel. Now, they had begun using that steel to manufacture weapons.

Moreover, they were paying farmers during the off-season to undergo military training. The wages weren’t small; they were at a level that reportedly improved the soldiers’ nutritional status, even increasing their muscle mass.

“On top of that, Marquis Gustique has even gone so far as to marry his son to a ‘flat-chested’ woman to solidify his position and strengthen his forces.”

By marrying the flat-chested First Princess as his son’s primary wife, the Gustique family had earned favor with both the Rolique royal family and the Famagusta Ducal family, as well as forged ties with the royal family of Thier.

And as if that weren’t enough, they had chosen flat-chested grandmaster-level mages as concubines to further expand their magical forces, essentially compelling their son to breed with them. It was terrifying.

Even if one had the capability to procreate with petite women, the psychological toll would be significant.

But as a result, the Gustique family now boasted four grandmaster-level mages—a terrifying reality. In the future, the children born to the three female grandmaster mages would further bolster their forces.

After pondering for a moment, Zowan nodded and said, “Indeed, you’re right.”

According to Count Jigstha’s predictions, it would take at least a few years, possibly as long as 20 years, for the Kingdom of Rolique to be fully ready to launch a counterattack. However, complacency was not an option. Waiting for the enemy to fully prepare would be the height of folly.

“Zowan, between Griffis and Rolique, which kingdom holds the advantage in terms of military strength?”

“Assuming the publicly available information about Rolique’s noble magical aptitude is accurate?”

While spreading false information about magical aptitude could harm one’s reputation, it wasn’t unheard of. History has examples of such traps being laid.

“Of course. And to add, there’s nothing in the intelligence from our spies to suggest any false claims about Rolique’s magical aptitude.”

“Understood… The damage from the last war was more severe for Griffis. We lost a significant number of mages. Meanwhile, Rolique’s magical forces sustained only minor losses during the war with Pomeis. In terms of overall national strength, Griffis is still ahead. However, with the five grandmaster mages from Rolique’s so-called ‘Miracle Three Years’ now operational, they likely hold a slight edge in magical strength. While Griffis has a larger population and can mobilize more regular soldiers, if we were to fight now, it would be an even match.”

“An even match…”

“However, that assessment assumes we take the most optimistic view of the greatest unknowns. Depending on the capabilities of those twins…”

“I doubt they could bypass interference from our wind attribute mages to perform large-scale depressurization.”

“I’d like to think so too… but there’s no use worrying about it now.”

“Indeed. How do you predict the balance of power will change moving forward?”

“In the medium term—over the next five years—I don’t foresee significant changes in magical strength. However, many high-ranking noble children in Rolique with undeclared magical aptitude remain a wildcard. That’s a major concern. Are we missing any intelligence in that area?”

“Unfortunately, no. We haven’t managed to obtain anything.”

Magical aptitude can be measured from around the age of five, but it’s not publicly disclosed by any nation’s nobility.

If they were to announce, “This child is grandmaster-level,” enemy nations might attempt to assassinate the child before they could develop combat abilities.

While exceptions exist, it’s standard practice to wait until the child is around 11—old enough to defend themselves—before making such information public.

In recent years, Rolique has delayed these announcements even further.

The Kingdom of Pomeis is said to have initiated its war with Rolique to seize disputed territories before the five grandmaster-level mages of the “Miracle Three Years” could fully operationalize.

As a result, Rolique now conceals the magical aptitude of its high-ranking noble children until around the age of 14. While such information may be shared among closely allied noble families for marriage purposes, it isn’t easily accessible to spies.

“It’s the kind of situation where someone could suddenly reveal, ‘Oh, by the way, I’m a grandmaster mage.’”

“Exactly. The full-blood siblings from the ‘Miracle Three Years’ are particularly concerning. If there’s a monster hiding among them, we could find ourselves at an even greater disadvantage in a few years.”

“Indeed, there’s no room for optimism.”

“As for non-mage soldiers, in five years, Gustique’s steel equipment will likely be widely distributed. While it won’t fully compensate for the disparity in numbers, it will undoubtedly narrow the gap.”

“I see…”

“Also, the information about Gustique supposedly increasing wheat production is troubling. If they’ve successfully improved farming methods, those techniques could spread to other territories, potentially boosting agricultural productivity across Rolique. If that happens, Griffis’s advantage in mobilization could be undermined. Even if we eventually replicate their methods, it would take at least a decade to see results.”

“If nothing else, waiting is clearly a foolish strategy.”

Count Jigstha sighed. At this rate, it was only a matter of time before a fully prepared Rolique mobilized a superior army against them.

“Honestly, paying reparations and making peace would be the best course of action.”

“In a kingdom where that would be accepted, life would be much easier… Why did we invade Rolique in the first place? And with barbaric tactics like nighttime raids on cities?”

The current King of Griffis had a strong sense of pride, and his court was filled with flatterers. Any proposal to pay reparations would be immediately dismissed and met with severe criticism.

“Indeed. Many of the king’s policies are beyond our understanding.”

Zowan chose his words carefully.

“My stomach aches just thinking about it, but we must appeal to His Majesty. Waiting is too dangerous.”