The Sun Is Hot, the Sky Is High, and the Grass Is Green - 5
A few days before the wedding, the Emperor summoned me.
It was a pity. Lately I had been dealing with him only through the communication orb, never face-to-face, and it had been wonderfully convenient — yet the moment vacation began, the summons arrived.
"Awwwoo!"
"It's been some time, Your Highness the Crown Princess."
As her godfather I could hardly refuse when he invoked the pretext that I ought to see my goddaughter's face more often. In truth, even if the reason had been something insane like "I called you because I was bored," I would not have had the power to refuse anyway.
Since the official excuse was to play with the Crown Princess, I ended up at the Empress's palace rather than the Emperor's office in the Hall of the Sun, imperial summons or not. At least I had avoided that den of overwork — a small mercy.
"Ooh?"
"Your Highness?"
Something felt wrong. The instant I took the Crown Princess from the Empress's arms, she began flailing her hands around near my chin.
Thinking she might want me to lay her down, I lowered my arms a little — only for her to make a sound like "baa-woo" and show clear dislike.
Confusing. In the few months I had not seen her, she had developed some peculiar habit.
"Pay it no mind, Minister. She's simply looking for something to grab."
The Empress, who had been watching, let out a soft chuckle and spoke gently.
"His Majesty the Retired Emperor also holds the Crown Princess from time to time, and whenever he does she always tugs on his beard. Since you have no beard, Minister, she simply cannot decide what to seize."
"I... see."
It was far too much information for a mere subject, so I offered an awkward smile. I had heard before that the Retired Emperor had sacrificed his beard to the Crown Princess, but I had not realized he was still being plundered months later.
This was the Retired Emperor — a man so cold and stern that if you stabbed him, blue blood would probably come out. Picturing him casually holding his granddaughter while she yanked his beard was enough to produce cognitive dissonance.
I suppose a grandfather is still a grandfather.
Come to think of it, the Retired Emperor had never shown much fatherly affection. An illegitimate eldest son, a wastrel legitimate heir, and a youngest who had been reduced to air by that wastrel — he had not distributed his love equally among the three. Whether that sprang from personal nature or a leader's sense of duty, I could not say.
Yet once he stepped down from the throne, the Retired Emperor had begun, little by little, to display a fatherly side that had left no earlier trace. That meant he had been suppressing his emotions out of responsibility all along. Late as it was, it was a relief that he could at least love his granddaughter wholeheartedly.
"Daaah!"
"Oh my."
While I was imagining the Retired Emperor scattering feed for his chickens, the Crown Princess — who had been flailing uselessly at my chin — let out a robust battle cry.
Then she seized me by the collar.
"Even I never managed that, yet the Crown Princess got there first."
The Emperor, who had been watching with his arms crossed behind me, spoke as if impressed.
What are you impressed about, you madman. Your daughter just learned how to grab her godfather by the collar.
We really shouldn't let her form a habit like this.
If — just if — the Crown Princess developed a habit of seizing her subjects by the collar, it would be truly problematic. No matter how kind and capable she was, the moment the line "grabs subjects by the collar when things go wrong" attached itself to her, would it not reek of a tyrant?
Of course she was less than a year old, so it was probably pure chance — yet if that chance continued for years, it really could become a habit. For the Empire's sake, that could not be allowed.
And so, as the Crown Princess's godfather, I steeled myself. If the Emperor was going to ignore this collar-grabbing, then I would have to correct her firmly myself—
"Byaa-woo~"
I met the bright, beaming eyes of the Crown Princess.
...
Kids will be kids, I suppose.
It wasn't as if she were yanking my hair. A little collar-grabbing? I could give her that all day.
Because the Crown Princess fell asleep still clutching my collar, I had to strip off my outer coat for an emergency escape.
"Sorry about that. Ended up confiscating the Minister's clothes out of nowhere."
"It's fine, Your Majesty. It's a uniform anyway — I have plenty of spares."
I gently shook my head at the Emperor's wry smile. It wasn't as if I went about in clothes adorned with gold. I wore only the Audit Department uniform issued by the administration, so there was nothing to apologize for.
My only real worry was whether clothes that had been rolling around here and there might pass some illness on to the infant Crown Princess.
"As expected of a godfather — you're generous. The Minister will make a fine father to his children."
"You flatter me, Your Majesty."
The praise came out of nowhere, but I instinctively bowed my head. What was this bastard trying to lead into by starting with compliments?
"Flatter you, is it."
At my reply the Emperor fell silent for a moment.
"If the Minister were not a good father, that would be a problem, would it not? So instead of saying I flatter you, call it an honor."
I raised my head again at the words that followed.
I thought I understood what the Emperor was worried about. If I raised my children with some fantastical approach to home education or insisted on pure self-study, it would, regrettably, be a catastrophe from the Empire's perspective. Not ordinary nobles, but the next Imperial Count and a little Duke with twisted personalities? And even the next Count of Wiridia who would control the North?
Chilling.
Even the slightest imagination brought Sodom and Gomorrah into view — a horrific future in which the Second Prince I had worked so hard to deal with was simply copied.
"Ah, I called you to say something pleasant, and I've gone and made it heavy."
"Not at all, Your Majesty. It was valuable guidance pointing me in the direction I must take."
I gave the customary reply to the Emperor, who now sounded embarrassed.
No — it was not merely customary. It was sincere. Of course I had never intended to neglect or abuse my children, but he had made me realize that if I let them go even a little astray, it would become a disaster on an imperial scale.
Moreover, the child to be born between Trixie and me would be one-quarter elf. Elves lived up to roughly a thousand years, so simple arithmetic said two to three hundred years of life. If a child like that became a tyrannical noble, I would never be able to hold my head up before the people.
I had said something that could have made the atmosphere awkward, yet the Minister did not seem particularly bothered.
Seeing that put me even more at ease. With a man like him, the odds of my worries coming true were vanishingly small. At the very least, the second generation of Crasius that the Minister himself educated would stand far from tyranny or arrogance.
That would be enough.
I felt relieved. The reason I had deliberately summoned the Minister just before his second wedding was precisely this. When a once-unmarried duke gained a spouse and an heir it was cause for joy — but I wanted him to know that having a child was not the end of it.
Judging by the Minister's reaction he would have done fine even without me. Still, this was a matter involving a ducal house, so I had wanted certainty.
"Oh, and Minister — while you're here, take this with you."
Now that the Minister had given me certainty and peace of mind, it was time to repay him for the summons and the probing.
"Your Majesty, this is—"
"A gift. How could the Imperial Family congratulate the marriage of an Imperial Count and a Duke empty-handed?"
I took from my robes a music box the size of both fists and held it out.
A lavish music box with a blue base, gold trim, and pure-white jewels. Even its interior was fashioned from materials sensitive to mana, so the budget and technology invested in this single piece were by no means small.
I did spend quite a bit on it.
I gave a bitter smile as I recalled the budget poured into this one music box.
Dukes stood at the pinnacle of the Empire's nobility and were the descendants of the meritorious retainers who had set the Mandate of Heaven aright. Naturally the Imperial Family respected them, and custom demanded that celebrations such as weddings be met with gifts of sincerity and money — and more money. The Ministry of Palace Affairs even kept a separate gift budget prepared solely for the dukes.
Yet House Katoban had known no celebrations for over a hundred years — a stark contrast to House Ociden, which had raided the budget twelve times thanks to the Golden Duke's vigorous activities.
And so I had poured in a sum that far exceeded the allocated amount. I had made it thinking of giving all the gifts House Katoban had never received at once, and of treating the Minister who had devoted himself to the Empire with proper respect.
"...I am overwhelmed by such an extravagant gift, Your Majesty."
The Minister seemed to recognize the music box's value as well, for he bowed his head again.
As long as he liked it, that was enough.
The day before the wedding I moved ahead of time to the Cervez Grand Duchy.
The previous wedding had been from capital to capital, so moving on the day itself had been fine; this one, however, was being held outside the capital. Even with teleportation available, it was more comfortable to arrive early and prepare.
Decisively, magicians regarded as giants in the continental magic world were gathering in the Cervez Grand Duchy. Of course they would not cause a ruckus in Trixie's territory unless they had lost their minds, but when guests assemble, the host ought to be present.
"Quite a crowd."
The moment I saw the list the head butler handed me, a hollow laugh escaped. Even though it recorded only the affiliations and names of the visiting magicians, its thickness was considerable.
And right at the front of the list stood the name of Duke Kilanas. Yes — I had known that man would arrive before anyone else.
"I'm beginning to worry whether we'll have enough space."
"Have no fear. The brush near the villa has been thoroughly cleared, so even if a large company gathers at once there will be no congestion."
When I voiced a small concern, the head butler answered with absolute confidence.
Such overflowing certainty inspired trust. If a head butler brimming with loyalty spoke so firmly, it had to be certain.
"Thanks to the retainers we shall be able to hold a beautiful wedding. Thank you."
"Thanks? If anything, we are the ones who should be thanking you."
The head butler bowed several more times, then vanished as abruptly as he had come, saying he would inspect the wedding venue again.
The more I saw of him, the more I worried. He was already like this with me when I was not even the official husband yet — how loyal would he become once I was? Outsiders might think he was a slave rather than a head butler.
"I'll have to watch my mouth in front of the retainers."
From now on I would have to be careful even with casual remarks before the retainers led by the head butler. If I was not careful, some order I did not even remember giving might be carried out somewhere.
"……."
"Trixie?"
As I spoke and turned my gaze, I found Trixie staring silently at the floor.
She's nervous.
It was an adorable sight, and a soft laugh escaped me. So she was tense because tomorrow was the wedding.
...Hmmmmm.
"Hyaaah!"
When I suddenly stroked her ears, Trixie flinched hard and shrank back.
Clear reaction. Satisfying.
"Ka-Karl! What do you think you're doing?!"
Trixie's face flushed scarlet in an instant as she protested in a trembling voice.
Ever since she had learned what touching an elf's ears meant, Trixie had been reluctant to let me touch them. I still did not know what it meant, but since she disliked it I had restrained myself.
"What's the big deal between us?"
But whatever it meant, was there any need to restrain myself now? We had already spent five hot days at the villa. Whatever the meaning was, it could not be hotter than those five days, could it?
"We're husband and wife now."
With that bold declaration I stroked both of Trixie's ears at once.
"S-stop... please stoooooop..."
Watching Trixie melt into a puddle was deeply satisfying.
I had been so frustrated at not being able to do this all this time.