Myself Before Others - 5

My discussion with the Imperial Chamberlain wrapped up quickly. Calling it a discussion was generous—it was mostly about the placement and quality of decorations—so I simply demanded things that were even more lavish and refined. The budget was coming out of the imperial coffers anyway.

If not now, when else would I get to bleed the Emperor dry? He was the one who'd snatched the wedding our family had been preparing to host. I trusted he'd braced himself for that much of a hit.

"Already finished?"

"Yes. It was just a simple question, so I wrapped it up and came straight back."

When I returned at light speed, Mother greeted me looking a little surprised. Honestly, when the Chamberlain said he had something to discuss, I'd expected it to drag on. Who would have guessed it would really just be a quick chat and done?

Hm?

After reporting my return to Mother and turning my gaze, I found Mar smiling brightly for some reason.

It was odd. Mar often smiled in front of me, and she always showed a soft, gentle side around Mother as well—yet as a duke's daughter she usually avoided such openly grinning expressions in order to preserve her dignity. And she was making that face while alone with Mother?

Of course I was glad that mother-in-law and daughter-in-law seemed to be growing close, but the unfamiliarity of it still struck me.

"You didn't start celebrating the moment I left, did you? I'd be a little hurt."

"O-of course not! Your mother simply said something wonderful to me!"

When I tossed out the light joke, Mar hurriedly shook her head. The way she startled even at something so simple told me her mind had been elsewhere.

And even while shaking her head, her face was still full of that smile.

What is this?

By now I was genuinely curious. Just how good a thing had Mother said to put her in this state?

"This… is a gift from your mother."

Reading the question in my eyes, Mar carefully extended her left hand.

A ring?

A silver band sat proudly on her little finger.

The ring itself was ordinary. As a gift from the mistress of a count's house it carried an air of refined luxury, yet there were no special ornaments or jewels. Instead, a small crest was engraved in the place where a gem would normally sit.

Ah. A signet ring.

The moment I saw the crest, my questions dissolved.

I knew that crest as a member of the Crassius family. It was exactly the mistress's seal that had been stamped on the documents Mother herself had approved.

No wonder she's overjoyed.

A soft laugh escaped me. A bride-to-be receiving the family's signet ring—the one the mistress herself had used—from her mother-in-law? That was proof she had been fully accepted as a true member of the house and its eldest daughter-in-law. To a noble, it might well be more precious than the wedding dress she would wear on the day itself.

"You've received something truly precious."

"Yes. I want to keep it for the rest of my life… but I plan to pass it on to my own daughter-in-law someday."

Saying so, Mar turned her gaze toward Mother and smiled once more.

As the son caught between them, I could only feel glad that mother-in-law and daughter-in-law got along so well.

That bastard Emperor needed to relearn the dictionary definition of "going to work."

Going to work was not merely sitting at a desk and processing documents. Going to where one's superior was and facing that superior was itself a legitimate form of reporting for duty. That was an immutable truth to which all one hundred million imperial subjects would agree.

"Welcome, Minister of the Inspectorate."

Yet I could not air that grievance in front of the Emperor. If I voiced my complaints and the one-month leave I was currently enjoying got canceled, how unfair would that be? When ordered to jump, one jumps.

In truth he was not petty enough to snatch back what he himself had given, but this was still the man who granted leave and then casually summoned one to the palace, so I could never fully let my guard down.

"Your complexion grows brighter every time I see you lately. Is that the look of a bridegroom on the verge of marriage?"

You son of a bitch.

The words "It would have been even brighter if you hadn't called me" rose all the way to my throat, but I swallowed them. Was it even appropriate to say "every time I see you" to a subordinate who was supposed to be on leave?

"…Yes. It seems the excitement of building a family refuses to stay hidden and has simply shown on my face."

"I understand completely. I felt the same when I married the Empress."

Hearing those words from none other than the Emperor left me with a strange feeling. The Emperor and Empress's marriage had not merely founded a household; it had altered the fate of the Empire itself.

He had probably been excited for other reasons beyond simply starting a family. The joy of survival, for instance, or the joy of being able to bury the Second Prince—things of that nature.

At least his luck with wives is excellent.

Of course no one in this world had better luck with wives than I did, but the Emperor still ranked in the top 0.1 percent. It seemed Enen had compensated for the thoroughly ruined luck with younger brothers by generously padding his luck with wives.

Well, when one's younger brother was the Second Prince, one at least needed good wife luck. If I had been born the First Prince, I would have killed the Second Prince and gone to hell together with him.

"In any case, I envy you, Minister. You'll get to feel that excitement five more times."

"It is a happiness so excessive it almost frightens me."

I nodded calmly toward the Emperor as he tossed out the joke in the middle of everything.

There had been a time when talk of six ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wives and six weddings would send me into a fit. With only Mar and Trixie already complicating ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my head, I had been hit with a confession relay, and there had been the whole business of splitting a perfectly good ring in half—plenty of mental exhaustion.

But not anymore. Six people loved me, and I was becoming lifelong companions with those six. What was there to dislike? If anyone teased me about having six wives, I decided to take it as an expression of pure envy.

"There is no such thing as excessive happiness in this world. Everything returns in proportion to what one has done—so it is happiness that fits your station."

At my answer the Emperor offered a faint smile and spoke those words.

Unexpected. I never thought this bastard could deliver normal comfort and encouragement. Had the new year caused even a slight evolution in his personality?

"Have a seat for now. Ah, by the way—have you decided on the officiant?"

"I asked the Duke of Victory. He accepted readily."

"What a pity. If you still hadn't found one, I was going to take the role myself."

Looking at him now, it was an evolution all right—a dark evolution.

Even as a joke there were things one should and should not say. One did not casually drop a spine-chilling line like that.

"If something should suddenly prevent the Duke of Victory from attending and you need a replacement in a hurry, just say the word. I was planning to show my face as a guest anyway, so officiating would be no trouble."

…That was a joke, right?

I had not wanted to summon the Minister of the Inspectorate if I could help it. I myself had granted him a month's leave, and I had no desire to bother a bureaucrat on the eve of his wedding.

Just as those who help you in hard times linger longest in memory, those who make themselves a nuisance during the great joys of life also remain long in memory. If one cannot become the former, one should at least avoid becoming the latter.

Yet I had summoned him all the same.

"The Lovens royal family and the Ostia royal family have sent gifts. They wish to congratulate the Minister on his marriage."

A matter had arisen that made it impossible not to call the man himself. Even an emperor could not simply confiscate gifts sent by royal houses.

"From the Lovens and Ostia royal families, Your Majesty?"

At my words the Minister tilted his head. The reaction was less shock at the fact that two royal houses had sent gifts and more the look of a man wondering what on earth I was talking about.

"If you mean the gifts from Prince Ryutis and Prince Later, I have already confirmed those. It seems two years spent together built a fair amount of affection."

Hearing the Minister's answer, I realized he was under a slight misunderstanding.

"Minister. I will say it again: these are gifts from the royal houses."

"……"

The Minister, who had been lightly furrowing his brow, suddenly went rigid. Only then did he grasp the full meaning of my words.

The gifts that had arrived at the Imperial Palace this time were not in the name of the "princes" but in the name of the "royal houses." The representatives of those houses had sent them under the houses' own authority.

And who the representatives of the Lovens and Ostia royal houses were needed no explanation.

The King of Armein and the King of the Yuven Coalition.

Fortunately the Pope had not also sent a gift. Whether "fortunately" was the right word was debatable, but that was the situation.

"It seems the two ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠princes spoke well of you to their houses. The envoy that arrived in Armein is also said to be conducting negotiations in a very favorable atmosphere."

"It is the blessing of the Great Emperor."

After ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a moment of silence the Minister finally opened his mouth and spoke those words.

Well. This looked less like the Great Emperor's blessing and more like a living someone's considerable contribution.

I have never seen diplomacy this easy.

I let out a quiet laugh as I watched the Minister's complicated expression. The "favorable atmosphere" reported by the envoys was better than the Minister himself imagined.

The King of Armein had already sent a gift of friendship to the Minister while he was still at the Academy. Naturally he had not hesitated to send another under the pretext of congratulating the Minister's marriage, and he had even mentioned the Minister during the negotiations themselves to create a soft, amicable mood.

"If we simply allow Armein to save a little face… they will bow before Your Majesty's majesty for no less than thirty years."

How desperate must things have been for the Minister of Foreign Affairs on the ground to say something like that?

Bowing before majesty—an extremely attractive phrase. Without a single battle, that same Armein would acknowledge the Empire's superiority and lower its head, and for a minimum of thirty years at that.

Nothing could be better.

Even the Retired Emperor had never completely subjugated Armein. He had broken their forces during the wars with the eastern kingdoms, yet it had always been a mutual avoidance of war rather than a clear superior-subordinate relationship.

And a minister who was not even present at the negotiating table had driven that hierarchical relationship. What a splendidly devoted vassal.

I never thought anyone would surpass that man's achievements…

I certainly never expected it to happen right at the beginning of a reign.

"I took a brief look at the gifts sent to you as well. They appear to be rather splendid pieces. You will be satisfied."

I spoke casually while watching the still-dazed Minister. I had delivered what needed delivering; it was time to send him home. Keeping a man on leave any longer would be improper.

"I will have the attendants deliver them to your residence shortly. Ah—would you prefer them sent to your territory instead?"

"…Please send them to the residence, Your Majesty."

"Very well."

A slight pity. If he had said territory I had been ready to ask whether he meant Tailglehen or Wiridia.

Not long after the Minister left, word arrived from the Empress.

"Is that so? Truly a blessing for the Empire."

I meant it. Even while his head was spinning from the gifts of two kings, he had still gone to visit his goddaughter—

?

Ah.

At the Empress's suddenly chilled voice, my body locked up.

My hands were already trembling. The Minister had not gone to the Empress's palace merely to see his goddaughter.

He told her… that?

Even while his own mind was in chaos, he had moved specifically to drive a dagger into my heart.

Vicious bastard. How had the Crassius house, which for generations produced only upright, loyal retainers, produced a man like this?

"A misunderstanding."

I hurriedly moved my mouth, forcing down the bitter feelings.

If I failed to weather this crisis, I would be spending the coming days alone in the Solar Palace.