New Exclusive Equipment!
Several days had passed.
At last, the situation I had been dreading finally exploded.
“Miss Diana? I will be the one sleeping beside Her Highness! Who else but me could possibly protect her!”
“Hmph. Says the one who can’t sleep unless she’s in Her Highness’s arms. If you truly wanted to protect Her Highness, wouldn’t standing guard outside the door suffice?”
With Loclear away, it was now Liana and Diana’s turn to put on a full melodrama.
“Both of you, that’s enough…. This princess wants to sleep right now!”
The two weren’t holding weapons, yet they were fighting more viciously than anyone.
After watching them, I had no choice but to take drastic measures.
“You two may both sleep beside me! Why are my own vassals quarreling like this!”
“What do you mean, ‘own vassals’! I am Her Highness’s very first vassal! Her Highness herself declared me her first vassal!”
For some reason, Liana’s shoulders shook as she wiped away tears.
Men are weak to a woman’s tears.
Even a princess like me—who was actually a grown man inside—was no exception.
“I-I’m sorry…! As an apology, I shall embrace you, so please stop crying!”
“…You promise?”
The moment the words left my mouth, Liana spread her arms wide.
‘She’s big in body only, the little kid.’
The instant I hugged Liana, Diana began throwing a tantrum.
“How come you only hug Liana, that’s so unfair…!”
Diana even went a step further and tugged at my body, which was already pressed close.
“D-Diana…! Stop that! You’ll stretch my clothes!”
“Aaaaah! Do it, do it, do it, do it! Pat me! Hug me!”
Haa….
It felt exactly like raising a disobedient puppy and kitten.
If I comforted Diana, Liana would whine. If I took care of Liana, Diana would whine even louder.
It was a miracle I hadn’t gone insane yet.
I wanted to bolt out of there immediately, but I was a child who had just entered a growth spurt.
At ten o’clock at night, sleepiness came crashing down on me like a tidal wave.
Even in this total chaos, not a single ounce of drowsiness had any intention of leaving.
“Uwaaah! Both of you, come here and let me hold you! This princess wants to sleep right this instant…!”
I wrapped my left arm around Liana and my right around Diana, then flopped straight onto the bed.
It probably looked quite Casanova-like.
“Y-Your Highness…!”
“Kyaa— Her Highness’s embrace feels so good!”
If they liked it, I suppose it was fine.
“Let’s sleep now…. This princess is going to grow up big and strong… so….”
It was an unusually easy night to fall asleep.
***
The sun rose, but I had no work to do.
After all, I had taken a vacation day today.
Thanks to the division of labor and the terrifying power of the maid uniforms, most tasks were handled by the officials.
The workload had decreased so much that even if I crammed several days’ worth of work into one, I could finish it in a single day.
“I’m back…”
“Oh, you’ve returned?”
I had arranged special lessons for Diana, who was clever but still lacked knowledge in many areas.
And the teacher was none other than!
The Empire’s brain, the Finance Minister!
After seeing Diana score perfect marks, the Finance Minister had begged so persistently to be her tutor that I eventually gave in.
That was the only reason I assigned him—no malice involved.
Exhausted, Diana naturally lay down with her head on my lap.
“…This princess does not recall ever saying you could lie here.”
My tone had grown slightly serious from the surprise, but Diana simply gave me a silly grin as if it were no big deal.
“Hehe. Your Highness, please pat my head too.”
She even had the nerve to ask a favor from me, a princess.
Were all the heroines in this novel like this?
From now on, even if they were original heroines, I would have to think carefully before making them my vassals.
“Diana, looking at you right now reminds me of something.”
“Hm? What is it?”
“A cat.”
Specifically, a cheese cat.
“Aren’t cats cute? Are you saying I’m cute too?!”
At this point, I couldn’t even tell if she was joking or serious.
Was this her real personality, or was she just a concept-obsessed gremlin?
I stared down at Diana, who was lying on my lap.
A face without a single blemish, pointed ears that tickled my thighs, and eyes like amethysts.
To be honest, her beauty was completely different from Liana’s.
If Liana embodied pure first love, Diana had the kind of adorable yet beautiful face that made you want to secretly pine for her.
And most importantly.
Compared to Liana and me, her chest was overwhelmingly large.
‘I’d say that’s about a D or E cup.’
It made me wonder if breast size and total mana capacity were proportional.
I gently brushed Diana’s hair behind her ear.
“Well, I won’t deny it.”
“…….”
Diana remained silent for a long while.
She was clearly trying to hide her face, but her ears—burning bright red—seemed to have no intention of hiding. They twitched wildly.
That was exactly why, even though she was constantly annoying and stacking up irritation points, I could never truly hate Diana.
‘This is… catgirl addiction?!’
I was still stroking Diana’s hair when I heard a click.
Liana appeared, holding a box of just the right size.
“Your Highness, I’ve brought what you requested!”
A few days ago, while Liana was asleep, I had asked Diana seriously.
Even though she had genius talent in everything, I had concluded it was better for her to dig one well deeply.
‘Diana, what kind of vassal do you wish to become? Will you wield a sword for me, cast magic, or become my strategist? Decide.’
‘I… want to become a mage for Your Highness.’
‘Very well. Then from now on, focus on training your magic.’
When I asked, it turned out she wanted to be a mage.
Since Liana already had exclusive equipment, it only made sense for Diana to have some too.
I had commissioned the servants and mages who worked in maid uniforms to create a custom uniform just for Diana.
And Liana had brought it at the perfect time.
“It is a gift for Diana. Try it on.”
“A gift…?”
Diana carefully opened the box.
“Wow…! It’s so pretty!”
Hehe.
It was a masterpiece I had created by pulling every fashion magazine from my mind, so of course it was.
Diana hugged the uniform to her chest and examined it from every angle.
The uniform was designed in the form of a pure white corset dress, perfectly tailored to Diana’s figure.
The skirt was long enough to be quite cold in winter.
An open-shoulder design that boldly displayed her chest, allowing her to flaunt it to the fullest.
A mage’s hat, an absolute must for any self-respecting spellcaster.
And a sleek black robe with such overwhelming style that even an average mage would look like a grand archmage.
All of it was a gift I had prepared just for Diana.
“Can I try it on right now?”
“Of course.”
Before I even finished speaking, Diana began stripping off her clothes.
I hurriedly covered my eyes.
“Y-You should wait until this princess leaves the room…! A lady must cherish her modesty…!”
“Hmm~? Your Highness, are you embarrassed to see my body?”
I couldn’t see her expression, but her tone made it easy to guess exactly what face she was making.
‘She’s definitely making that mesugaki face.’
For some reason, Diana’s voice sounded strangely excited.
Like a cat that had just discovered a new toy.
A moment later, I heard footsteps, and something soft yet warm—like freshly baked bread—pressed against the back of my hand that was covering my face.
“Your Highness, mine are bigger than Liana’s, right? Doesn’t it feel good?”
“DIANA!!! I will never forgive you!”
Wait a second….
W-Was that her chest…?
“Uwaaah! Liana! Quickly pull Diana off me!!”
“If I pull her off… you’ll see my body. Are you sure that’s okay?”
“Liana! Whatever you do, do not pull me away!”
.
.
.
After the small commotion passed, Diana put on the custom uniform I had gifted her.
She looked truly beautiful in it.
It was the kind of visuals you’d only see in anime.
“Mm, it’s lovely!”
“Indeed. It suits you perfectly.”
Every time she received praise, Diana squirmed with delight.
“But where’s the staff? A mage needs a staff!”
“I’ve prepared that as well, so follow me!”
The pinnacle of cosplay was, of course, the signature weapon.
No matter how good the outfit was, if the weapon looked cheap, people would laugh.
So even though I felt a little sorry for Calian, I had once again dipped into the treasury.
‘Calian will forgive me, right? Yep.’
I took Diana and Liana with me to visit the magic training instructor.
I knocked politely three times, waited a moment, then flung the door wide open.
“Instructor, have you finished preparing what this princess requested?”
“You mean the staff? It has just arrived! Oh, and please take these magic tomes as well!”
Oh, he was doing a proper job educating the successor.
I had heard that crafting a magic staff was an incredibly difficult task.
It wasn’t simply attaching a mana stone to a wooden stick.
You had to carve the wood with the best mana conductivity, then intricately link a precisely cut mana stone with the wood’s magical threads before it could become a mage’s staff.
The expensive materials combined with the difficult craftsmanship had even led to the creation of specialty shops that sold nothing but wands.
This was precisely why, no matter how much Calian wanted to increase the number of mages, he couldn’t.
‘If I were to compare it to modern times, it would be like training fighter pilots?’
Normally, mages of the Varshain Empire would receive cheap wands, but our Diana was different!
We had used an entire tree of the most expensive wood and embedded a top-grade mana stone.
Because so much money had been spent, the specialty shop had even provided a custom carrying case.
“Diana, take it.”
Diana immediately pulled the staff from its case.
“Wow… Can I try using it once?”
“Absolutely not!”
“No way!”
It was only natural that both the instructor and I reacted this way.
A lower-grade mana stone had already turned an entire training ground to ash. If she used a staff made from an entire top-grade tree and topped with a top-grade mana stone as a catalyst?
It wasn’t a joke—the capital of the empire would be half-destroyed.
“Then how am I supposed to practice?!”
Watching Diana come up with every excuse imaginable because she wanted to use it, I smiled brightly.
“Let’s try casting magic with your bare hands!”
“Aaaaah! I want to be a knight instead! I want to change classes!”
To utter such nonsense in front of someone who was truly serious about magic.
Diana’s fate was as clear as day.