I awoke to the faint rustling of clothes. The warmth that should have been beside me was already gone, leaving only a lingering trace. As if sensing that I was reaching out for her warmth, a gentle hand slid into mine. Feeling reassured, I squeezed her warm hand, and then I started hearing a soft swishing sound, like something fluffy cutting through the air.
ăâŠGood morning.ă
ăGood morning, my Lord.ă
When I opened my eyes, I saw Kugi, wearing my T-shirt, smiling at me from the bedside. The soft swishing sound seemed to be coming from her three tails. The fox-like animal ears on top of her head were twitching playfully, and her golden eyes sparkled with lively energy. It looks like Kugi is in top form today too.
ăHeheâŠă
As I continued to absentmindedly squeeze her hand in my half-asleep state, Kugi started to giggle at me. Maybe she was thinking something like, âEven though you teased me so much last night, youâre acting all sweet now that itâs morningâŠâ Well, itâs not like I enjoy teasing her that much. Kugi is just really good at tempting me⊠If anything, I might be the one being toyed with, sometimes I feel like Iâm in the palm of her hand.
ăGuess I should get upâŠă
ăYes, my Lord. Letâs take a bath. Iâll wash your back for you.ă
ăIâm looking forward to it, you really know how to wake up someone.ă
Iâm really looking forward to it. The only problem is that after the bath Iâll have to endure something really troublesome.
ââ â
ăEven though you have Lady Christina as your fiancĂ©e, youâre sharing a bed with another womanâŠ?ă
ăâŠă
After enjoying a pleasant morning bath with Kugi, the two of us headed to the lounge area to relax. But it was there that I ran into the source of my apprehension.
As soon as we met, I felt two sharp gazes piercing my face. One came from a beautiful woman with wavy brown hair, wearing an elegant knightâs uniform, complete with a sword at her waist. The other came from a tall blonde maid with a slightly harsh expression, wearing a maid outfit that was a little different in design from Meiâs.
ăI canât exactly share a bed with Chris⊠Besides, Chris fully understands our lifestyle and is still willing to build a relationship with me.ă
ăThat may be so, but that doesnât mean Iâm happy about being neglected.ă
My fiancée-to-be pouted as she said this, giving me a sidelong glare while poking my chest and stomach repeatedly with her index fingers. Stop please, it hurts more than it looks. And why do you only use your index fingers? Are you trying to press some secret pressure points?
ăIâm not neglecting you. Thatâs precisely why Iâm not hiding anything and interacting with you as normal.ă
ăMmm⊠So, in other words, this is a test to see if I can endure your lifestyle, Hiro-sama?ă
ăI think âtestâ is a bit of an overstatement.ă
I exasperatedly shrugged my shoulders, and my fiancĂ©e-to-be, ChrisâChristina Dareinwald, the next Countess Dareinwaldâfinally decided to stop her relentless poking.
To be honest, the crew had divided opinions on whether we should restrain ourselves or continue our life as usual while Chris and the others were on board. Mimi, Mei, Tina, and Kugi insisted that we should keep things as they normally are, while Elma and Wiska argued that we should show some restraint. What about Dr. Shouko and Neve? Those two just watched the whole thing unfold with amused grins on their faces.
The girls who wanted to keep things as usual outnumbered the rest, and I also felt that we should continue as normal. So, last night, in accordance with our usual schedule and the order decided by the girls themselves, I spent the night with Kugi.
Now, why didnât we hold back even though Chris and the others were with us? Well, letâs assume that in the future, Chris and I successfully become engaged, and then eventually get married. Even if that happens, I donât have any plans to quit my job as a mercenary. At least not at this point. Why? Because I still have something I need to find.
Yes, Iâm talking about cola. That black, sweet, refreshing, and tangy carbonated drink. If I marry Chris, we will probably build a grand mansion with a garden somewhere on one of the residential planets owned by Earl Dareinwald and live a leisurely married life there. But will there be cola there? No, there wonât. Without cola, without that nectar, the peaceful life with a house and garden that I dream of wouldnât be complete. Without colaâoops, my thoughts wandered off there.
ăThat said, your understanding isnât entirely off the mark. Even after marriage, I donât intend to change my lifestyle. If that happens, there will naturally be a lot of time when Chris and I are apart. And Iâll still keep my relationship with the other girls. If you canât endure that, then you might want to reconsider our marriage. Thatâs just the plain truth.ă
Thereâs no point in putting on an act just for now. Sure, thereâs some validity to the argument that, since Chris is with us, we should show some restraint, or at least consider her feelings during this short period. ButâŠ
ăOf course, I understand that. But since I canât be with you at night, you could at least pay more attention to me during daytime, right?ă
ăWell⊠yeah, I suppose.ă
Chris gave me a dazzling smile in response to my reply.
ââ â
ăSo thatâs why Chris-chan has been sticking so close to you all morning.ă
As we started having breakfast in the dining hall with Chris and the others, Mimi arrived a bit late and sat down across from me and Chris, who was sitting beside me. She nodded with an understanding look on her face.
ăIâm learning how Hiro-sama usually lives.ă
Chris replied, puffing out her chest proudly next to me.
I had to refrain from commenting on the difference in chest armor between the two of them, but the words âbattleshipâ and âdestroyerâ came to mind. It used to be more like the difference between a battleship and a corvette, so I suppose that means sheâs been growing steadily. She might already be on par with Elma, or evenâ ÆrÄewebnoŃ”Ńl.cÏm
ăOuch!ă
ăOh ho ho. I just felt some unpleasant waves, so my hand moved on its own.ă
Elma, who sat down next to me on the opposite side of Chris, glared at me after smacking me on the head. Her breakfast today was as hearty as ever. Whatâs with this âunpleasant wavesâ anyway? When did Elma develop some kind of telepathic ability?
By the way, Kugi didnât come straight to the dining hall with us; she went to fetch Dr. Shouko, who was still holed up in her lab. That person gets so absorbed in her research that sheâll go on working for hours without eating, so someone has to check on her and make sure she eats.
ăYa got it tough, Boss.ă
ăOh, you donât need to mind us too muchâŠă
ăNo, I wonât disregard you two, Iâll treat everyone equally.ă
Tina seemed fine, but Wiska looked a bit uncomfortable around Chris, probably due to Chris being a noble. So she and Tina had moved to a slightly distant table. While Wiskaâs reserved and gentle nature is one of her virtues, It can become a problem when she restrains herself that much⊠Though Iâm not saying she should be as bold as Tina.
ăIf ya keep starinâ at me so intently, yaâre gonna make me blush.ă
ăYeah, thatâs right. Youâre always cute, Tina.ă
ăHehe, thanks!ă
Tina blushed slightly and gave a shy smile. Yup, sheâs cute. Seeing our interaction, Chris started watching Tina intently as if wanting to commit to memory Tinaâs actions to later reproduce them. But honestly, I doubt Chris could imitate Tinaâs charm, that only works when itâs natural.
ââ â
ăSo, on a more serious note. How much does Earl Dareinwald know about the situation?ă
After finishing our meal and exercising in the training room, I moved to the lounge and asked Chris this question. However, Chris quickly averted her gaze. Hey, this is no joke, donât mess around with me like that.
ăHaha, just kidding. My grandfather is fully aware of the circumstances, and of course, he supports the idea of me getting engaged to you, Hiro-sama. Itâs justâŠă
ăJust?ă
ăNot all of our vassals are entirely convinced.ă
Chris said, her shoulders slumping.
ăI seeâŠ?ă
Even as I said that I tilted my head in confusion. The vassals of the Dareinwald House were probably retainers of lower rank, like viscounts or below. Would such vassals have the power to interfere in the marriage matters of their lordâs family? It seems they have, given that Chris brought it up as a concern.
ăWhatâs the problem? Well, I suppose my status or position is a big issue for being the consort of the next Countess.ă
ăItâs not so much about your status, Hiro, the issue is that some of those vassals want to use this opportunity to position someone from their own family as Chrisâs husband. That way they can improve their standing within the Dareinwald faction.ă
ăUm, well, not everyone has bad intentions, you know? Of course, thereâs a certain amount of calculation involved, but many of them genuinely believe that they are doing it for Dareinwald Houseâs sake, they think that in this time of crisis for the House, itâs their duty as vassals to support us.ă
Chris replied with a slightly awkward smile, waving her hands to placate Elma, who was giving her an unconvinced glare.
Still, I imagine Chris finds it rather annoying. After all, she wants to marry me.
ăHowever, thereâs some validity to what the vassals are saying. As a noble in name only, I donât have any real backing, I wouldnât exactly be a strong ally in helping the Dareinwald House out of a tight spot⊠But is the Dareinwald House really in such dire straits?ă
ăIn a way, yes. If I were to die without leaving an heir, it could potentially lead to the end of our House. Of course, there are several vassal families with Dareinwald blood if you trace back far enough, so in that event, one of them would likely be chosen to continue the Dareinwald House.ă
ăDoesnât that mean that, in the worst-case scenario, someone might try to assassinate you to take over the Dareinwald House, Chris?ă
Upon hearing my question, I felt a sharp intent emanating from Edeltrud and Marion. This must be the anger theyâre directing at me. My psionic abilities have been steadily improving, so Iâve become sensitive enough to pick up on things like this.
ăI donât think there are any families thinking that far ahead, but the possibility isnât zero.ă
ăI see. Well, letâs set that issue aside for now. Are there any problems besides the potential end of the Dareinwald bloodline?ă
ăThere are countless smaller issues, but the main concern the vassals have is that bringing you, Hiro-sama, into the Dareinwald House doesnât offer us any direct benefit.ă
ăThatâs a valid concern.ă
ăHowever, since it has been decided that you will also be engaged to Serena-san and Elma-san, this gives you a strong connection with the imperial capital, and Marquis Holz House which is a prestigious military family with a larger territory than our Dareinwald House. If we can establish future trade, personnel exchanges, and technology exchanges with their territory and the imperial capital, it would provide significant benefits.ă
ăSo, thanks to my engagement with Elma and Serena, the vassalsâ concerns have essentially been eliminated?ă
ăExactly. All thatâs left is to return to the territory and convince everyone.ă
After saying this, Chris smiled brightly.
I see. In other words, everything has been solved already so we donât need to be too much on guard. Yeah, thereâs definitely going to be some trouble. No way things are going to be so easy.
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