""Well, fighting while wearing this... I wonder about that?" (Wendelin)

Come to think of it, is a circlet something a man would actually wear?

There were no men wearing circlets around me in my previous life. I'm not accustomed to wearing accessories either. I would hate being told that it doesn't suit me by those around me.

Ah, well I guess there are no people who will tell the current me straight to my face that it doesn't suit me.

But, I would hate having rumors about it spread behind my back.

"... That's the reason." (Wendelin) "

should read as

"Well, fighting while wearing this... I wonder about that?... That's the reason." (Wendelin)

With nothing in between the question mark and the ellipses. However, the author wants us to do the work of imagining the internal monologue some how parsed and spoken out loud. This is the author's unique style. The author is truly a master at being lazy and sloppy.

The protagonist enters the world stage through displaying his strength to the Kingom by using Holy Magic to slay an Undead Dragon that attacked the travelling flying ship he was using. After the Undead Dragon fiasco comes the political manipulations of the King who gives him an unseated (Not owning a territory) Nobility rank of associate Baron and later uses said rank to use a loophole in the law to force him to attack a creature no minor had any right to be near let alone battle.

In Volume 13 our protagonist is a landed Earl. A talented veteran magician adventurer shows up, pressuring her former student, now our protagonist's newest wife, about revealing the secret of how her magic capacity has increased (the protagonists secret). She starts emitting her magic in the family's courtyard, freezing plants, furniture, and a retainer/friend in place with four pregnant wives nearby. It gets to the point where the protagonists unofficial mistress, who just awakened magic within the last week, feels the need to provoke the adventurer into a duel to distract her from continuing to press for the secret, while the protagonist just stands there and watches the show.

Earlier in the story the protagonist was able to use a stun spell (which was supposedly more difficult and inefficient than just killing) to neutralize 70% of 10, 000 soldiers, but later on (with a larger mana pool) he along with his wives and 1500 elite soldiers are besieged by 10, 000 soldiers for ~2 weeks, and are about to run out of food before being saved by another force performing a pincer attack.

He alone should have just been able to sneak out at night and use one big spell to wipe out the entire enemy force.

... the author introducing a small independent country that's very much like old Japan in this European setting. They supposedly have the most advanced magic technology on the continent, peerless warriors wielding a magic katana, and Japanese food that everyone agrees is delicious, because everyone on Earth also loves miso, soy sauce, and rice... right? RIGHT?

... the protagonist's children are still babies and need constant care by their mothers.

Vol. 12 felt like a mostly coherent story line that was important

Vol. 13 half introducing a new character, half side stories

Vol. 14 mostly side stories while deepening relationship with students

Vol. 15 mostly side stories

Vol. 16 entirely Doushi (Klimt Armstrong) retelling of his youth

Vol. 17 first half seems important to the main story, the second half is food related side stories

Vol. 18 more than half of the chapters are side stories, one is a character's backstory, one introduces the next arc

Vol. 19 I had high hopes for this arc, but this volume is more food/fishing/hunting stories and low tension developments

Vol. 20 Aaand the first 2 chapters are harvesting potatoes, fishing, making curry, and hatching an egg.......