Does Marriage End Your Civil Servant Life? - 2

A slow, peaceful breakfast is one of the finest ways to start a day. Ordinarily, "breakfast" meant little more than cramming soup or bread into my mouth before bolting, but thanks to vacation—humanity's greatest invention—I could actually enjoy myself.

I was happy. No need to lift the bowl and drink the soup straight. No need to sprint out the door with a piece of bread clenched between my teeth. Like a civilized person, I sipped my soup with a spoon and gave serious thought to which dressing belonged on the salad. How ordinary. How perfectly, blissfully happy.

Nice.

I nodded to myself as I slipped a neatly cut piece of steak into my mouth. The chef had always been skilled, but lately it felt as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠if he had leveled up again.

Or maybe my appetite was simply racing toward a full recovery.

"Nngh—"

Right in the middle of that satisfying meal, Mar's soft moan suddenly broke the quiet.

Granted, "moan" was overstating it. At most it was a little louder than a servant setting a dish on the table.

Unfortunately, everyone present was a noble thoroughly trained in table manners. Unless something truly unusual occurred, meals here unfolded in silence—so Mar's voice rang out like a battle cry shattering the calm.

"…Are you all right?"

And even more unfortunately, everyone also knew exactly what had caused that sound. Which was why Trixie, ears flushed red, asked after Mar's well-being.

Kind, and yet merciless. Right now, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠grit-your-teeth and pretend-you-heard-nothing would have been the correct move.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for worrying."

Mar's hand trembled around her fork. She forced a smile as she answered, but her eyes were so glossy she looked ready to burst into tears at the slightest touch. She did not look fine at all.

Embarrassment and guilt hit me at the same time. Maybe I should have held back a little. This felt like publicly shaming a pure, sunny newlywed bride.

"I see. That's a relief, then."

Fortunately, Trixie seemed to glimpse the future in which Mar bolted from the table if the conversation dragged on. She hastily shut it down with a cough.

Instead, she kept fiddling with her still-red ears and shot me furtive glances, looking utterly at a loss.

I really should have held back.

I nearly sighed. That sidelong look wasn't about guilt over shoving Mar into public mortification. It was the terror—and anticipation—of knowing that in roughly half a year, she would be going through the exact same thing.

Half a year, huh.

When the other lovers' gazes started gathering on me as well, I quietly took a sip of water.

Holding wedding after wedding would have been cruel to the guests, so we had settled on a six-month interval. At first I had felt sorry for making my lovers wait so long, but looking back, it might have been the best possible choice.

At least this public execution only had to be witnessed once every six months instead of every month or two.

Whether it would end after a single round was another question—but for now, I would think of it that way.

After the meal, teatime proceeded without incident. Mar, who had been floundering in shame, managed to settle her emotions, so there was no room for further chaos even if anyone had wanted it.

Once again, an inexpressible happiness washed over me. Not a return to work after eating, but teatime. Being able to indulge in this supreme luxury made me so glad—

What.

In that moment, the communication crystal in my pocket gave a short ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠buzz. Someone had sent a message.

Normally I would have scowled and dug it out, bracing for some disaster. These days, though, I checked it with a leisurely hand. It would only be a congratulatory note on the honeymoon. I was on newlywed leave; no work-related message should be coming through.

The Emperor?

The sender's name made me flinch on instinct, but I forced myself to relax almost at once.

No need to panic. Right now I was shielded by the sacred armor of a honeymoon. Even the Emperor could not simply summon a subordinate who was enjoying newlywed bliss. Even in a Confucian state with absolute royal authority, you did not casually call up a subject who had just lost a parent.

So I opened the Emperor's message with a light heart—and read:

Shit.

A curse rose all the way to my throat. On the surface it was a request that I make time; in substance it was a notice that might as well have been an order. If I had been alone, I probably would have hurled the crystal across the room.

What the hell is this.

My hand started shaking of its own accord. I blinked rapidly, checking whether something was wrong with my eyes.

Nothing changed. No matter how many times I reread it, the Emperor's message said exactly what I had first seen. The Head of the Canonization Department from the Holy Kingdom wanted a face-to-face meeting with us—husband and wife.

Damn it. Was I dreaming? And if so, where had the dream started?

"Brother? Is something the matter?"

The man who had been calmly drinking his tea was suddenly glaring at a communication crystal with a twisted expression, so Luise—cookie halfway to her mouth—tilted her head.

Not only Luise; every one of my lovers turned to look. I hurriedly smoothed my face. Mistake. Even if the Emperor had just lobbed a deranged bomb into my lap, showing open displeasure in front of the family was not the look of a proper head of household.

I would have to reflect on that. Freshly minted as a husband, I still had a long way to go.

"Ah—something a little unusual came through, that's all. Was it that obvious?"

I opened my mouth with the most natural smile I could manage. As if nothing were wrong. As if I were not furious at all.

"It really is a little unusual, isn't it?"

Apparently Luise had not found it natural.

Strange. I was fairly decent at managing my expression, yet it never seemed to work on her.

"Honestly, it's very unusual."

After a brief internal struggle, I came clean. Couples who were going to become family should not hide things from one another. I had sworn that more than once already.

Besides, this involved Mar as well as me. Even if I wanted to keep it quiet, I could not.

"You remember that… spectacular incident at the wedding. Because of it, two Department Heads have come from the Holy Kingdom."

"Department Heads?"

It was Mar who answered. With the topic turning to the wedding, of course the bride herself would step forward.

"Yeah. From the Sacred Ascension Department and the Canonization Department. They're en route to the Imperial Capital now."

Tension settled over Mar's face. The Sacred Ascension Department oversaw the Ascension Rite—one of the Dawn Church's greatest ceremonies—and the Canonization Department, true to its name, handled the canonization of saints. For the heads of such core departments to have come because of us was enough to make anyone nervous.

Mar was a duke's daughter, but even a member of an imperial ducal house could not treat Department Heads of the Holy Kingdom lightly. This was a world where the gods actually existed and had proven their majesty.

What do I do.

I turned the problem over while watching her. Mar had already gone rigid at the news that two Department Heads had crossed into the Empire for our wedding. How was I supposed to add, "And the Head of the Canonization Department wants to meet us in person"?

Worse, the Emperor's message claimed the Head wanted to discuss faith with us. A cardinal and Department Head was not going to seek us out for spiritual enlightenment. There was clearly another reason—and that reason was almost certainly a matter of canonization.

I was not expecting Mar and me to be declared saints, but even becoming candidates for sainthood would bring enormous honor and authority. If we actually became saints, needless to say…

And that was the problem. If the Emperor had simply ordered me back to work, I could have ignored it. This, though, was an honor no one could refuse on its face. On top of that, a Department Head who had traveled all the way from the Holy Kingdom to the Empire wanted a meeting; turning him down risked making things awkward between our nations.

"…And of the two, about the Head of the Canonization Department—"

After a long hesitation, I finally opened my mouth.

This could not be avoided or hidden. Better to just say it…

I stood blankly on the pier, watching the fleet draw nearer. Ten ships, each bearing the vast emblem of the Holy Kingdom on its sails, were approaching.

They're huge.

A flat ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠observation, but what else could I say? Each vessel alone radiated overwhelming presence, and there were ten of them massed together. The moment you saw them, "large" and "magnificent" were the only thoughts that came to mind.

And when you considered who was aboard that fleet, "huge" was the right word. Two figures the Empire itself would have to treat with the utmost care were on those ships.

Should I even be standing here?

It felt stifling—like being forced into clothes that did not fit.

But there was no helping it. I was here by His Majesty the Emperor's command. As the Emperor's only younger brother and a Marquis of the Empire, I was bound to obey.

"Receiving Department Heads is properly the Foreign Minister's duty, but the Foreign Minister is still in Armain. Among the Foreign Ministry personnel remaining in the Empire, there is no one of equal standing."

The only problem was that it had been a command I never needed to receive in the first place.

"Therefore, Ainter. Go and greet the Department Heads. If the Emperor's own brother receives them, they will be satisfied, and the practical work will be handled by the Foreign Ministry officials who accompany you."

Recalling His Majesty's matter-of-fact voice, I adjusted my necktie.

It had certainly been a sudden order, but it was also a sign that His Majesty trusted me and considered me qualified. The least I could do was live up to that trust.

"Your Excellency."

While I was steeling myself, a Foreign Ministry official assigned as my aide approached with careful steps. A director-level officer in charge of diplomacy with the Holy Kingdom, if I remembered correctly.

"It may be best to begin preparations now."

"Yes. Let's do that."

I nodded and started walking. The Holy Kingdom's fleet had already docked; as the director said, we needed to get ready if we were to receive the Department Heads properly.

…Department Heads.

A faint tension stirred. While a kingdom's ministers ranked below an imperial minister, Department Heads of the Holy Kingdom were treated as equals. Inevitable, given the Holy Kingdom's religious authority.

Perhaps that was why, whenever I thought of the Department Heads whose faces I had yet to see, the Minister of the Inspectorate Ministry sprang unbidden to mind.

If they're monsters like the Minister, we're in trouble.

Please let them be decent—relatively decent—people.

I seemed to have been dreaming a futile dream.

"Elder, why take such a roundabout route for such a short distance? I nearly ascended to heaven from seasickness."

"I told you repeatedly. When I looked ahead, it seemed we would meet with disaster if we hurried. If one has foreseen a calamity that can be avoided, one naturally avoids it."

"Yeah, right. Spare me the fortune-telling. You just took your sweet time because you wanted some fresh air for once."

"It would appear the calamity was your mouth all along."

The moment I saw the elderly man and the young woman bickering their way down from the flagship, I understood.

The Department Heads of the Holy Kingdom were not normal either.