Epilogue: Towards the First Trip Abroad(3)

Poncho was known for giving ground when pushed, which they had seen from

his appearances on the broadcast programs. For any woman even slightly confident

in her appearance, it might not have been unreasonable that they thought they could

push past his defenses with sheer momentum. In point of fact, Poncho was not very

good at fending off those sorts of advances.

Hmm... I was happy to hear that a good retainer like Poncho was a hit with the

ladies, but I was hoping he would continue doing good work for me in future, so I

didn't want anyone too weird catching him.

"Have you taken countermeasures?" I asked.

"Yes. I have already asked Madam Serina to act as Sir Poncho's assistant. She

attends arranged marriage meetings with him, and drives off women who approach

him purely out of personal ambition."

Oh... No need to worry, then. If Serina was there as Poncho's assistant, it would

probably be fine.

There were some issues with Serina's personality, but she was extremely

graceful and beautiful. If she was at his side, the women who were only a little

confident in their appearance, and who thought they could seduce him, would back

down.

I had often asked her to serve as Poncho's assistant before this, but Serina always

said things like, "When I go to such efforts on a gentleman's behalf, I hope he will get

his act together a little more. I am working very hard, so please, treat me to a meal

again sometime."

Though she complained, and it was obvious she was only doing it because she

wanted his food, she seemed to be proactive about looking after Poncho. Poncho

loved both to eat and to cook, and Serina was hooked on the junk food from Earth

that he and I were developing together.

Serina seemed unaware of it because she had let her sadistic tendency to bully

cute girls get out of hand, but it felt like he had completely tamed her with food. He

was a timid man you couldn't leave alone, and she was a strong-willed woman who

tended to meddle, so they got along well and... Wait, huh?

"Serina attends Poncho's marriage meetings, right?" I asked.

"Yes. I hear that many women excuse themselves when they see what the woman

standing next to him looks like."

"Isn't that like... Serina's unconsciously 'sheltering' Poncho?"

"..."

...

We looked at one another, awkward looks on the faces of liege and vassal alike.

...Yeah, it was best we not get involved in this matter. It would be uncouth for us

to butt in and say anything. For the moment, I decided to change the subject.

"Ahem... Anyway, I'll bet it's not just Ludwin and Poncho, is it? You must have a

significant number of proposals coming your way, too, don't you?"

Hakuya was handsome, and he was the closest of all the men close to me. I

couldn't imagine the ladies and nobles of the world would let him get away. When I

brought it up, Hakuya got a look on his face like he had bitten into something

unpleasant.

"I... have no intention of taking a wife just yet."

"It's not that you aren't interested in women, though, right? Are you one of those

guys who thinks marriage is too much of a hassle?"

"No," said Hakuya. "I do intend to have a wife and children some day, but I want

to find and choose a partner for myself. I wouldn't want someone else to force a

marriage on me."

"...You're saying that to me?" I asked.

For Liscia and me, our betrothal had been totally forced on us. Even with Aisha

and Juna, they'd both initially approached me with other motives because of their

positions; and when it came to Roroa, she had brought her whole country with her

so that she could protect the people of the principality through marrying me. I

hadn't met a single one of them in an ordinary way.

When I pointed that out, Hakuya bowed his head to me, more flustered than I

would have expected from him. "I apologize. I didn't mean to speak ill of your

betrothals, sire..."

"It's fine. I mean, in my world, the majority of people thought the way that you

do."

In Japan, marriages were generally for love and with the consent of both parties.

In this world which hadn't managed to throw off the feudal system, the higher

their position in society, the less freedom people had in that regard. In particular,

when it came to the marriages of the knights and nobles, their meaning as a bond

between houses was majorly important. Like with Ludwin and Genia, or Hal and

Kaede, there were cases where the houses were already associated with one

another, but those were rare exceptions. In most cases, the higher up you went on

the social ladder, the more the house's expectations determined one's marriage

choices.

Though, that said, if someone had enough authority, like I did, it was an issue that

could be dealt with. It had come up with my betrothal to Juna, but if we had arranged

to have her adopted into a noble family, it would have been possible to adjust the

status difference between us.

In Hakuya's case, he was the Prime Minister of this country, so he could do

something like that. So, in this case, it was an issue with Hakuya's views on marriage.

Well, if there was one thing I could say, it was that no matter how it got started in

the first place, love was love. My bond with Liscia and the others was so deep now

that I couldn't imagine parting with them.

"Hey, some loves have started in a relationship that was forced on people, you

know?" I asked, speaking fondly of my own loved ones.

Hakuya looked taken aback, then smiled a little. "...I suppose you're right. When I

see you and your family, sire, I start to think that maybe it would be all right."

"But for now, you still have no intention of marrying anyone?"

"I apologize."

Hmm... Well, if he wanted to wait for his ideal woman to appear, I supposed that

was an option. Maybe he had already met someone like that, and was engaged in a

one-sided love right now.

"But as your king, let me say, you had better start training your heir in case the

worst should happen," I said. "I'm sure you'd like to be able to settle into an easy

retirement nice and early, too, right?"

"That's true. I think I'll look for a good time to take on an apprentice."

"Oh, I guess an apprentice works, too. Come to think of it, you've been teaching

Tomoe, haven't you?"

Tomoe was my little sister by adoption, and I loved her dearly. Recently she had

been learning reading, writing, and arithmetic from Hakuya, and he was apparently

teaching her this country's history, too. I'd heard that she was an enthusiastic

learner, and Hakuya was responding to her by becoming an enthusiastic instructor.

When I brought it up, Hakuya smiled wryly. "I gave in to your little sister's drive

to be of help to her big sister. Though she is not especially clever, she does have

passion, so I believe she may become an accomplished individual given time.

Though, that said, I have no desire to place my heavy burden on your little sister's

shoulders."

"Haven't you already turned into a doting teacher?" I asked.

"My opinion is based on a calm evaluation."

Hmm... Well, if Hakuya was thinking about this stuff in his own way, that was

good enough, I guess.

"Hey, wait! How did we get onto this topic again?" I asked.

"From talking about how we're swamped with marriage proposals for you, sire,"

Hakuya said. "And on that note, I want you to get out of the castle for a while. If you

are not present in the castle, it is easy to refuse the nobles who insist on you 'just

meeting them once.'"

Oh, right. If I wasn't present, I couldn't meet them even if I wanted to. His plan

was to be evasive and avoid giving any straight answers while we waited for this

wave to subside, no doubt.

"But what about my government work in the meantime?"

"Fortunately, there are no pressing concerns, and the country is stable right now.

For your ordinary government work, you can use that creepy 'Factory Arm' machine

of yours and it will handle the job just fine, won't it?"

"Don't call it creepy," I said. "Well... I guess you're right."

He was talking about the human arm-type manipulator that Genia had

developed: the Factory Arm #1. By attaching the Factory Arm #1, which could move

like a real human arm, to a mannequin, I was able to perform my government work

from a distance. It was creepy to look at, so it wasn't popular with those who had to

visit the room, like the bureaucrats or the chamberlain, but it was a very handy thing

to have.

It was true that, so long as I had it, there was no need for me to stay in the castle.

"So, once I'm out of the castle, what are you expecting me to do?" I asked.

"Well, in order to provide an environment where it's easy to shut out nobles who

want to meet with you, while also being closed off and easy to secure, I was

considering a short-term enrollment in the Royal Academy or Royal Officer's

Academy for you, but..." Hakuya pulled out a single letter. "Now that something like

this has arrived, I believe I will send you abroad."

"Abroad?" I inquired, looking at the letter. There was a dragon crest on the wax

seal.

Hakuya bowed his head. "I took the liberty of opening it and perusing the

contents. It is a letter of invitation to the Contract Ceremony in the Star Dragon

Mountain Range."

"Madam Mother Dragon sure works fast, huh."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

Hakuya looked at me questioningly, so I explained to him what had happened last

night. When Hakuya heard I had spoken to Mother Dragon in my dreams, he had an

excited look on his face that I didn't often see from him.

"What an honor that must have been!"

"You seem awfully high strung. Hakuya, are you one of those Mother Dragon

worshipers?"

"Oh, no... It's true that my family were Mother Dragon worshipers, but I'm not

that pious myself."

"Okay, then what has you so excited?" I asked.

Hakuya shrugged his shoulder exasperatedly. "The only nation the Star Dragon

Mountain Range has formed diplomatic relations with is the Nothung Dragon Knight

Kingdom, but there are rare occasions when Mother Dragon will make an exception

and invite a specific individual to have them form a riding contract with a dragon.

From what I've heard, the first king of this country was also invited to form a

contract with a dragon."

Oh, the first king, who'd been summoned from another world like me.

Bringing together the various races, founding the Elfrieden Kingdom, forming a

contract with a dragon... he'd sure acted a lot more like a hero than I ever had. Excel

probably knew all about those times, so maybe it would be good to talk to her about

his achievements at length sometime.

"Well, unusual as it is, is it really something we should be in such a rush to go

do?" I asked.

"There is something in common between you and the first king, sire. You were

both summoned from another world. That's why, for some, you remind them of the

first king. If you manage to form a contract with a dragon there like the first king did,

the number of people who view you and the first king in the same light will increase.

If the people respect you more, the country will become even more stable."

"I'd be borrowing the authority of the first king, then," I mused. "That sounds like

it'd lead to inflated expectations, and I don't like it."

"Be willing to put up with that much, please. You are doing your job as a 'king,'

but your title as 'hero' is being left to rot. In order to avoid losing to the Empire or

the Orthodox Papal State in terms of dignity, considering that both of them have

saints, I've been thinking we need something prestigious."

"I get what you want to say, but... don't get your hopes up too high, okay?" I

hedged. "It's not guaranteed that I'll be forming a contract with a dragon. I mean, I

might only have been called there as a guest of honor."

Having warned Hakuya, I rested my cheeks on my palms and thought about it.

For a start, if I were to assume it was already decided I would be going to the Star

Dragon Mountain Range... then the next thing to decide was who I would take with

me.