A Lush Green Lawn
"My goodness, Devi! Is that woman from earlier really your wife?"
"M-Mother?"
My mother, whose long, straight hair had always been her most striking feature, looked exactly as she had when she was alive. Her eyes sparkled as she spoke.
"Yes, my lovely son. When did you grow up so much that you went and found yourself such a beautiful bride?"
"What?"
She stroked my hair as she spoke.
"They say my new daughter-in-law is the Empress. How on earth did that happen?"
Mother pulled me into a tight hug. Before I could even formulate an answer, her eyes shone with excitement.
"And you two seem to get along so well! You have no idea how surprised I was. Oh, my sweet baby... when did you grow up so big and get married?"
I tried to squirm out of her embrace as she patted my rear.
"M-Mother, please let me go."
Something felt off. Was Mother always this tall? No, my body had shrunk. That was the only way to explain my suddenly stubby arms and legs.
Holding my childhood-sized body tightly in her arms, Mother cooed.
"Fufu, I've wanted to hold my little Devi like this for so long."
Pat, pat. I was far too old to have my rear patted like a toddler. I protested again.
"M-Mother, please let me go."
"Just a little longer. It's been so long, hasn't it?"
Her words left me speechless. Seeing her radiant smile, I found it impossible to refuse her firmly, so I let my body go limp.
"Hehe. My angelic Devi. When did you become such a grown-up?"
"Well... about that."
Then, she asked with genuine curiosity.
"And you're married, too. You two seem to have a wonderful relationship... but what was all that talk about a forced marriage through blackmail?"
"Uh... well..."
How could I possibly tell my mother that I had forced the marriage by taking her mother and sister hostage? As I hesitated in sheer embarrassment...
Thump. Mother lightly tapped my head in a playful scolding gesture and continued.
"Devi. You know you shouldn't do such bad things, right? Of course, I trust you, but I'm telling you just in case—you must never make a woman cry."
I gave an awkward smile at her words.
"I... I didn't make her cry."
Well, I might have made her cry a few times before we got married. But I don't recall making her cry even once since the wedding.
Stroke, stroke. "Of course you didn't. That's my boy. So, when are you going to give me grandchildren?"
"What?"
Mother nodded as if it were the most natural question in the world.
"Why are you so surprised by the mention of grandchildren? You two seem so affectionate, so I'm sure it won't take long, but I want to see my grandchildren as soon as possible."
"Well..." What was I even supposed to say to that?
"Our Devi is so handsome, and my new daughter-in-law is exceptionally beautiful. The child will surely be absolutely adorable, won't they?" Cold sweat trickled down my back as I watched Mother's eyes sparkle with anticipation.
"I don't have any plans to have children."
At my blunt response, Mother's happy daydream shattered. She frowned slightly, looking down at me in her arms as if I had said something absurd.
"What on earth do you mean by that? When a husband and wife love each other, children are a natural blessing. So hurry up and show me my grandchildren."
I spoke firmly to cut off her soaring imagination.
"We're not having any."
Mother scowled and began to scold me in earnest.
"What are you talking about? How can you say you won't have children? Sigh... My Devi, you've always had a bit of an eccentric streak since you were little, but you can't carry that into adulthood. You are the head of the great Lion family and the Grand Duke of the Grand Duchy of Francesco. A man in your position cannot harbor such irresponsible thoughts. Furthermore, isn't your wife the Empress of the Empire? If someone like her has no heir, the Empire will..."
Mother's nagging continued relentlessly.
"Besides, when a man and a woman love each other, conceiving a child is the natural order ordained by the gods. Why would you refuse that? Haven't I told you children multiple times how important your duties as nobles are? To hear such irresponsible words from you... I am deeply disappointed in you, Devi. Now, hurry up and have a child..."
Reunited after all this time, I found myself completely overwhelmed by her endless nagging.
"Ugh... I-I'm sorry..."
"Darling, are you alright?" I woke up to the sensation of someone gently shaking my shoulder.
"Huh? W-Where am I?" Was it... a dream?
"Haa... haa..." It felt as though I had been kneeling and listening to Mother's nagging for nearly an hour. I vaguely recalled dreaming about getting scolded by her for refusing to have children with Theodora.
The memories of the dream were hazy. I had been forced to kneel and endure her lecture, just like when I got in trouble as a child. To think I'd have a dream like that. Was it... just a nonsense dream?
Theodora wiped the sweat from my forehead with the sleeve of her nightgown. "My goodness, look at all this sweat. Did you have a nightmare?"
I nodded weakly. "Yeah... I dreamed I was getting scolded by my mother."
Theodora looked puzzled. "What? You dreamed of your mother?"
I gave a small nod. "Yes. It's been so long since I last saw her, and she gave me an absolute earful. Sigh..."
To nag me like that just because I said we wouldn't have children... My mother would never do that. If we have a child, I might die. There's no way my wise mother would scold me like that without knowing the circumstances. Yes, this was definitely just a meaningless dream.
However, Theodora didn't seem to share my skepticism. She spoke in a hesitant, cautious voice. "Um... darling. Actually, I dreamed of your mother too."
My head snapped toward her. "What?"
"In the dream, she thanked me for marrying you... and then she asked... when we would have a baby... so I told her we would share some good news soon..."
Looking at Theodora, whose cheeks were slightly flushed, I asked, "And what did Mother say to that?"
"She said thank you. She said she always felt sorry that she couldn't take better care of you, and that she could finally rest easy now that you have such a... a good wife..."
Hearing her words, I became even more convinced that my dream was just a load of nonsense. Yes, definitely a nonsense dream. There's no way my mother would scold her own son whom she hasn't seen in ages while thanking her daughter-in-law. If anything, she would have told her not to mistreat me.
"Do... do you think Mother was trying to tell us something?"
I shook my head firmly. "No way. It's just a silly dream. Ugh... sleeping here after so long must have given me weird dreams. I'm still tired, so I'm going back to sleep for a bit."
With that, I pulled the covers back over myself and lay down.
"Hmm..." I stood inside a massive warehouse. I had come to audit our military supplies and ensure everything was in order.
"Accounting for the rate of loss... the numbers match up well enough." I checked the inventory of war supplies—fodder for the horses, magic scrolls, arrows, and the like. It was highly likely that Yohanes would make his move soon, so we needed to be prepared.
"Agrippa, how many new recruits have we gathered?" Beside me, Agrippa looked up from inspecting a barrel of military-grade oil.
"Since last December, our numbers have increased by about a thousand."
I nodded. A thousand, huh... They've been working hard.
Unlike the modern world with its conscription systems, wars here were fought primarily with volunteer soldiers or hired mercenaries. While mercenaries allowed one to amass a large force quickly with enough gold, they were notoriously unreliable. They would flee the moment the tide of battle turned. Thus, a standing regular army was crucial, but training, feeding, and paying them to become competent soldiers took an immense amount of time. Furthermore, they couldn't just be drafted at whim; if there were no volunteers, there were no recruits. Unless a territory was completely destitute and desperate, lords rarely sent their serfs or common citizens to the front lines.
"In that case, won't we need more scrolls and explosive iron spheres?" Although the physical inventory matched the ledger, I felt we needed to stock up on more war supplies to accommodate the new recruits.
"The current stock of scrolls and iron spheres should suffice. Unless every single recruit is going to become a grenadier, this is more than enough."
I nodded in agreement. If one had to name the most critical military asset after mages, it would undoubtedly be the grenadiers. In modern terms, they were the equivalent of artillery. However, unlike the modern world where one simply had to manufacture cannons and train crews, grenadiers here were selected strictly based on superior physical build and operated as a specialized unit. The reason was simple: they had to hurl incredibly heavy iron spheres over vast distances.
"Let's leave the inventory at that, then... So, Agrippa, how are you feeling? You're finally marrying the woman you love." Agrippa let out a goofy grin at my question.
"I'm incredibly happy. Honestly, I think I finally understand what it feels like to walk on air."
I chuckled. "I'm glad to hear that. You know Mary's birthday party is next week, right?"
Ever since returning, I had been focusing on auditing the things I couldn't properly oversee from afar. There was so much to review: military supplies, territorial development, troop sizes, and even the Grand Duchy's expenditures. Even here, corrupt officers frequently embezzled military supplies, so I couldn't rest easy without checking personally. Ledgers could easily be falsified if someone had the mind to, which kept me constantly on edge.
"Yes, of course I know. But you've only just returned after so long. Is it really alright for you to do nothing but work? You should rest a little." I shrugged at his concern.
"I'll have eternity to sleep once I'm old and dead." With that thought, I stepped out of the warehouse.
"Still, I think Her Majesty and Mary are feeling a bit neglected." I shrugged again.
"What can I do when there's so much work? Oh, right. Could you call in Martin, who distinguished himself in the last war, and Philip, that enemy commander who's supposed to be an exceptional general?" Agrippa nodded.
"Yes. I will have them summoned to the Grand Ducal Palace as soon as you return." I nodded in approval.
"Ah, and Agrippa. You've heard that you're scheduled to be appointed as the Minister of Military Affairs for the Grand Duchy after the wedding, right?"
The primary reason I hadn't been able to appoint Agrippa to a high-ranking position until now was his commoner status. It would have been nearly impossible for someone of low birth to command and control the proud, arrogant nobility. However, by marrying Mary, Agrippa would take the Lion surname and become a noble, effectively resolving any issues regarding his lineage.
Agrippa's face paled, looking half-dead as he replied, "Just how hard do you plan on working me to give me a position like that?" I simply shrugged.
"Think of it as securing a future for your children. Anyway, is the wedding preparation going smoothly?"
"Yes. Our preparations are complete, but Queen Octavia, who will actually be managing the ceremony, is scheduled to arrive the day after tomorrow."
Typically, wedding preparations were overseen by a high-ranking noblewoman of the family. Under normal circumstances, my mother, the late Grand Duchess, would have taken charge... but she had already passed away. Since both Mary and I were entirely clueless about such matters, my older sister, the Queen of the Northern Sea Kingdom, was coming to help manage the wedding and the birthday party.
"Well, that's a relief then." I nodded, satisfied.