Two months had passed since the Graduation Ceremony.
I had been staying at the Magic Tower since I graduated.
Before graduating, I had received the position of the Senior Researcher at the Magic Tower and had been conducting various research.
The Magic Tower was a good place for me.
I could work on politics, freely conduct research, and have a certain degree of freedom.
"Rudy, I've brought your coffee."
"Ah, thanks."
I received the tray from the apprentice wizard.
On the tray were two cups of coffee.
I took the tray and walked to my seat.
Oh, and there was another good thing about being in the Magic Tower.
Thud!
"Rudy."
"Ah, Luna, you're here? I just finished brewing the coffee."
It was being able to be with Luna.
After graduation, Luna had immediately received a research position.
She had made some achievements during the war and had done numerous things during her third-year apprenticeship, earning her a corresponding position.
Of course, besides Luna, it was easy to interact and meet with others.
From the standpoint of the Magic Tower, whether it was Astina, Rie, or Yuni, it was easy to meet anyone if I stepped forward.
"Mmm, the coffee smells great!"
"Right? It's coffee sent by Astina."
Luna and I had tea time like this every morning.
There was no specific work time in the Magic Tower, as many people researched throughout the night.
So, having a leisurely tea time before starting work wasn't a problem.
Luna sipped her coffee and looked out the window.
There was an awkward look in her eyes, but I just smiled and watched her.
Luna made up her mind and cleared her throat.
"Hmm! The weather is nice this morning too!"
"Yeah, it is."
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})I looked outside the window.
It was the transition period from spring to summer.
The flowers were blooming beautifully, and the weather was cool, perfect for walking outside.
"Right, right! How about we have dinner together tonight? I know a restaurant..."
"Ah... That might be difficult..."
I smiled awkwardly and shook my head.
Luna let out a regretful sigh and pouted her lips.
"Is something up? You seem busy these days..."
"A bit busy, yes."
"Busy... with work?"
"Somewhat busy."
I said quietly, with an awkward smile.
It had been a week since Luna had started making various excuses to ask me out for meals.
Since I had been continuously rejecting without giving any specific reason, Luna became suspicious.
Luna looked dejected and hung her head.
"I see... If you have work..."
Seeing her like that made me feel guilty.
Should I postpone my work?
But I couldn't just postpone it. There was a specific reason why I was working this hard.
"Alright... Then, I'll be going."
Luna said that and left my room.
"Sigh..."
I let out a deep sigh.
"Should I just tell her?"
I muttered to myself while looking out the window.
"Luna too?? You asked him on a date and got rejected?!"
Yuni narrowed her eyes as she spoke.
"Yeah... I've been asking for days, but he says no..."
"Sigh... What the hell is he doing that's so important?"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Rie sighed beside her.
"He must be busy with work these days... Well, that can happen..."
Luna said it could happen, but her expression said otherwise.
She looked pretty upset.
While the three of them were grumbling,
Tap. Tap. Tap.
"But why are we meeting here?"
Astina, sitting at a desk, asked.
Astina was frowning and tapping her fingers on the desk.
This was Astina's office in the Persia mansion in the capital.
"Well, we don't really have another place to meet, do we? Please, let it slide~."
Yuni said with a bright smile.
Although her demeanor was cute, Astina wasn't fooled by such charm.
She had been tricked by such words many times before.
Despite having graduated from the Academy two years ago, she ended up helping with student council work and dealing with various matters using the power of the Persia family.
She had been through quite a lot.
"We could meet at the Magic Tower or the palace."
"Rudy is at the Magic Tower, and the palace is too conspicuous."
"I'm sorry..."
Rie shrugged her shoulders and said to Astina, while Luna awkwardly smiled and bowed her head in apology.
"More importantly, what do you think, Astina! Do you think this is acceptable?"
Yuni exaggerated her gestures as she spoke.
At this, Astina sighed and opened her mouth.
"Rudy can't help being busy. Rie's coronation is coming up, after all."
Soon, Rie would ascend to the Emperor's throne.
When the coronation ceremony takes place, the Magic Tower, would take about a week off.
It was like a consolation holiday given by the Emperor.
So, it seemed Rudy was trying to get ahead on work that needed to be done during that period.
"Even so! Can't we even have dinner? We have to eat dinner anyway!"
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})At Yuni's outcry, Astina smiled.
"Well, that could be possible."
"…Hmm~?"
Yuni scrutinized Astina closely as she spoke.
"What's with that look?"
"Astina. Do you know something?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"There's something fishy~. Something, something…"
Yuni stretched her neck towards Astina and touched her chin.
"What smell are you talking about?"
"I have a very accurate nose for this kind of smell, you know?"
Rie looked at Yuni with a blank expression.
"Since when have you been good at smelling that kind of thing?"
"You're supposed to play along at times like these!"
"Anyway, Astina, do you know something?"
At Rie's question, Astina shrugged her shoulders.
"You'll find out in time."
"See! I knew it! You do know something!"
Yuni was fuming at Astina's response.
Luna pondered Astina's words, tilting her head.
"Find out in time...?"
In the dark evening, I was wearing a hood and looked around. Seeing no one around, I quietly entered the cabin in front of me.
Inside was a middle-aged man. The middle-aged man smiled slyly as I entered.
"Rudy, you've arrived."
I narrowed my eyes at him and asked, "Is the item ready?"
"Hehe... Why do you ask? Follow me."
He gestured to me, and I followed him down into the basement of the cabin.
After descending the dark staircase to the basement, he reached out his hand.
"Please wait a moment."
He went to a corner and brought back a small box.
"Here is the item. It took quite the effort to prepare."
"Hehe... Thank you. May I check it?"
"Yes, go ahead."
I smiled and opened the box. Inside the box were five splendid rings.
"Ha ha ha! These are the rings I've put the most effort into!"
The man laughed happily, thumping his chest. I smiled broadly in response.
"Thank you. I really like them."
This place was the home of a craftsman of fine goods in the capital.
I found out about this place about a month ago.
I was talking to Astina at the time.
Originally, we met to talk about my personal affairs.
It was related to the commerce of the capital.
Astina, befitting the Lord of the commercial city of Persia, knew a lot about various commercial aspects.
While talking about business, I also learned about this craftsman.
Although his workshop was small, his skills were so exceptional that he was raking in money in the capital.
That's when I thought this place would be perfect.
And I immediately acted on it, entrusting this craftsman with a task.
The task was to make five rings.
These were essential items for the plan I was carrying out, so I invested a large sum of money, and now I was here to see the results.
The craftsman turned on a dim lamp and looked towards me.
"Wouldn't it be better to just turn on the light and meet? Why do we have to do it like this?"
"Ha ha... Since I attract a lot of attention from many people, I need to be a bit cautious."
"Ah, must be tough on you."
"Well, it is what it is..."
I scratched my head.
"Ah, you should check if the size fits."
"Yes, I should."
I picked up a ring with a small diamond embedded in it from the box.
After trying it on a few times, I slipped the ring onto my ring finger.
I smiled, satisfied with how it fit.
"How does it look?"
"It fits perfectly. Thank you."
"Hehe, I'm glad to hear that. But what about the other rings..."
"Ah, can I come back if there's a problem with those?"
I asked, smiling awkwardly.
The biggest issue at the moment was that I had the rings made without getting permission from the people involved.
"Yes, of course. Just give me a heads-up, and I'll take care of it right away! Hehe!"
The craftsman chuckled, patting his chest.
I smiled, gathered the rings, and put my hood back on.
"Thank you. I'll be back next time."
"Yes! Take care!"
After leaving, I looked up at the sky.
I pondered under the starry and moonlit sky.
"Ha... This should be okay, right?"
The reason I'm busy to the point of not being able to have dinner with everyone, making these rings, is because I have a plan.
Soon, Rie will be crowned as the Emperor.
After that, we'll all become busier.
I'll have my own things to do, and everyone will have their own tasks.
So, I decided to do something before the coronation ceremony.
The name of that plan is the Harem Marriage Operation.
It might sound a bit cringeworthy, but the operation name is very intuitive and explanatory.
Currently, there are four women around me.
All of them are attractive, and I like them all.
I can't choose just one.
So, I'll choose all of them.
It's not illegal to choose all four, right?
That was my decision.
I looked down at the ring in my hand.
"But, how do I explain that..."
I'm going to marry all of them.
I have to explain that to everyone.
Thinking about it made me feel incredibly overwhelmed.
