Very Wrong Reincarnation: Isekai with Game Nation

Vol. 2 Chapter 22

"Here, Lady," Anna said, her voice soft. She had held her title for almost four months now and was currently serving Mila as her attendant.

She handed over a slice of apple and began peeling an orange next. Mila accepted the apple silently, taking a small bite to taste.

"Umm, will you tell His Excellency that he’s the father? Lady, I don’t mean to intrude, but the entire Cignus Federation would celebrate if they knew His Excellency finally had a child," Anna said cautiously. Mila’s hand instinctively caressed her stomach as she remained silent for a moment before finally speaking.

"They’d probably demand another one—or worse, they’d forcibly snatch my child from me," she replied, her voice tinged with bitterness. For the past seven years, she had observed how Oliver, despite his best intentions, failed to recognize the extent to which his fanatical people practically worshipped him as their sole ruler. 

The very least, he understood that revealing his plan to resign prematurely could provoke a civil war, given how dependent the nation had become on his centralized control. Most of the annexed territories, which had never experienced a republican form of government even long before under Valur rule, viewed him as an irreplaceable figure. They treated him not as a temporary leader but as a near-mythical constant king until an heir could be named.

For a man who wanted to relinquish the burden of ruling an entire federation, Oliver had worked tirelessly to stabilize the country and prepare it for transition. Progress had been made, allowing him to plan for his eventual resignation and the initiation of preliminary elections to fill the soon-to-be-vacant presidential position.

However, disaster loomed. The minority factions in the Loval Assemblage had only barely and grudgingly accepted the idea of elections, and no viable candidates had announced their intention to run. This left the Federation effectively headless the moment Oliver stepped down. 

The various territories, many of which basically operated semi-independently, harbored rivalries—sometimes escalating to physical and verbal altercations among their representatives. The sole reason they refrained from all-out war was Oliver’s unifying presence. If he were to disappear, the fragile peace in the would would collapse into utter chaos.

Chaos would breed war.
 
War would bring devastation. 

Devastation would obliterate any hope for a peaceful life. 

In essence, Oliver realized that retirement would not grant him peace. The Federation had become, in effect, a de facto monarchy, whether he liked it or not—perhaps even a hereditary dictatorship. 

That was why the majority of Cignus people, who swore loyalty to him alone, preferred his offspring to succeed him rather than any elected official. 

Mila painfully understood this all too well. She had no plans to stay with Oliver, which meant her child—the only potential heir to Oliver’s rule—would be forcibly taken from Valur by any means necessary. The child would become the next ruler of the Cignus Federation, whether Mila consented or not.

"Oliver won't see me as a woman—that no longer matters..." Mila said, sinking into the couch with a calm yet weary demeanor. "I won’t force myself into his life. I already have my connection, and this country, this world… none of it matters to me anymore. With this, I am contented," she added, her gaze drifting southward, toward the man who was the father of the child she carried. 

"I wonder what his stupid reaction would be," she murmured, a fleeting smile crossing her lips as memories of her and Oliver flashed through her mind, brief and bittersweet. 

Anna watched her silently, the weight of unspoken thoughts lingering in the room. 

The future of Valur appeared increasingly bleak, as the center of the continent was engulfed in the fires of war ignited by Cignus.