I am not one to use force often, but that did not prevent me from accomplishing what I once decided to do.
Once I put it in my mouth, that was it. That fact meant that no matter how much Count Arund refused, it was useless.
In the end, Count Arund had no choice but to make a donation in return for the bullshit.
Count Arund was handled that way for the time being…
The meeting then continued as if nothing had happened.
However, Meyer still seemed unsettled. I glanced sideways at Meyer in the middle of the meeting.
It was impossible not to be bothered by the fact that his complexion, a hero of the reversal, had been saturated with blue by an argument with a nobleman during the meeting.
Could it be that there is something he is hiding?
I need to talk to Meyer. I wonder what he’s thinking…
Up to now, I had reacted somewhat insensitively to the succession issue, as I too have been busy with my work as emperor, but I certainly can’t live as a dink forever.
‘At least the title should be continued…!’
How can I be a part of the empire!
I sighed softly in my mind.
I’ll have to find out what Meyer meant after the meeting. Thus, the conference ended with nothing but confusion.
That did not mean that I could afford to have a conversation with Meyer right away.
The reason was that once I rose to the position of emperor, I had more to handle than I had expected, and there was more time to spare after I had given my seal of approval to a large number of projects.
‘If you don’t get approval straight from the top, you’ll be paralyzed from the bottom…’
I sighed softly, stamping my seal on the papers. As soon as I tried to catch my breath for a while, August came to me.
“Your Majesty, you asked for me.”
“Ah, Grand Duke Di Winitas. Welcome.”
I welcomed August.
The door closed and August and I were left alone in my office. I threw off the courtesy I had been solemnizing. I asked, hastening to linger at my desk.
“August, has Meyer ever said anything to you? About why he’s so sensitive about an heir…”
In public, we were polite to each other, but in private, everyone was exactly as they had been in the old expedition days, using the same language and designations.
The Grand Duke, the trio, treated Anasta, Robur, and Began with respect, and so did I, the emperor.
August answered curtly, wondering to what extent he had perceived the baptism of questions that had suddenly flown in.
“I am not sure. I haven’t heard anything specific about it.”
“Ha…”
I sighed a little and leaned back in my chair.
“I don’t know what he’s thinking, but I’m sure he’s stuck in something weird that we can’t guess.”
I agreed with August’s words. The problem would be to get a sense of what the weirdness was, and only then would we be able to get a clue about the dialogue.
The succession problem… I leaned my forehead on my little finger, glanced at August, and asked.
“Come to think of it, August, what are you going to do with the succession problem?”
August’s Grand Duchy had become a sanctuary for priests and attracted many priests. The Grand Duchy, which was no different from the Holy Land, was the second-largest power in the Empire.
Now that August and I work well together and maintain a confidential relationship… It would be just as confusing without someone to take August’s place.
“I am going to make the most faithful person my heir. I don’t know how far the bond of faithfulness can last… and I know that one day intentions will change, but isn’t blood the same?”
“You’re not going to get married?”
“I have sworn to be faithful to St. Marianne, and of course, I do not intend to marry.”
August said proudly, sticking out his chest. A smile full of faces looked proud.
“St. Marianne is not forcing you to be celibate. Why do you have to be single?”
“Marriage is about putting your partner first.”
“… Yes.”
“But for me, there will never be a better partner than religion. If I married someone in such a state, I would end up deceiving them because I would not be able to give them my best. And since deceiving people is a violation of the teachings of St. Marianne, I will not gain anything in the end.”
Marriage is about putting your partner first… I repeated August’s words in a small way.
Perhaps Meyer’s avoidance of succession might have something to do with me.
Still, I had a small clue.
Next, I have to ask him directly. I brightened my eyes with determination.
When I finished my work, it was already after dark and the sky had been dark for some time. Stretching myself, I said to Mary.
“I’m going to bed soon, so ask Grand Duke Knox when his work will be finished.”
Mary returned shortly after the order was given. Mary told Meyer’s answer with a bewildered face.
“He said he was tired today and went to bed first…”
There should have been no word more irrelevant to Meyer than the word tired.
Meyer, who said it, me, who listened, and Mary, who told me, all knew it was true.
A quick-witted guy. He seemed to have a pretty good idea of what I was going to talk about today.
I clicked my tongue and let go of the pen I was holding.
“Then I’ll go to the Grand Duke’s bedroom.”
“But…”
Mary hesitated and blurted out her words. Since it was the first time this happened, she seemed to be choosing what to say for a long time.
I waved my hand out.
“Go to sleep first. How big is the Grand Duke’s bed, and isn’t there any place for me to crawl in?”
“Then I’ll get ready for bed.”
Mary quickly answered with a bow of her head. This is what I liked best about her after I made her my chambermaid. She agreed so quickly that I didn’t have to speak to her twice.
After I finished getting ready for bed, I went to Meyer’s bedroom.
The shimmering silk robe fell gracefully along with the flex of my body in translucence like the wings of a dragonfly. It was Meyer’s favorite.
He had never said he particularly liked it. But I couldn’t help but notice that every time I dressed like this, his eyes would flare and his gaze would become strangely insistent.
And so I arrived at Meyer’s bedroom. Meyer was lying on the wide bed, placed under a decor as elegant and old-fashioned as my bedroom, with his back to me.
Hmph. I can’t believe he’s going to bed.
For someone who wakes up quickly in his sleep if he hears someone’s presence, pretending not to hear me like that and showing his broad back meant nothing more than that he did not want to face me. I leaned back with my arms crossed against the bedpost and asked.
“Meyer, are you going to turn your back that much for the rest of your life?”
“…”
“If you avoid today, what about tomorrow? What about the day after tomorrow?”
When I persistently asked, he stood up quickly from the bed. A crack between his eyebrows, like he had been frowning all day.
His eyes flicked subtly for a moment as he saw my appearance, and he stealthily avoided my gaze. Yeah, that means it’s not going to be easy today.
In fact, he was also dressed up. I could see his firm chest and bright abs through his loose-fitting shirt.
If Meyer was aiming too, I thought, he was accurate.
I moistened my lips with my tongue and sat down with my hips secretly attached to Meyer’s side.
Meyer, who did not know my true feelings, asked me with a serious face.
“Do you really need a successor?”
“You’re the Grand Duke. I’m the emperor. We need a proper successor for the balance of the empire.”
I could cite a number of examples of countries that have failed to have a successor in a timely and decent manner and have fallen in vain. Even if they were not the countries of this world.
Meyer’s face turned pale as I replied matter-of-factly,
“But are you really going to get pregnant? It’s dangerous.”
In a moment, through his golden eyes, I could see the worst things that could happen to me in the future rise up and disappear.
“If it’s a child you have to have anyway, it’s not a bad idea to have it early. You’re right, it’s dangerous. Delivering a child in old age is not good for your health.”
“That’s why you don’t have to have a child in the first place.”
Without knowing the reason, words continue to turn.
What is the reason for Meyer’s refusal to get pregnant so far? Does he really think I’m in danger and oppose the pregnancy?
But this is a world with healing magic… A world where even if your arm is cut off, as long as you receive healing magic in a timely manner, your arm will soon be attached.
If it were not for this world, I might never have thought of pregnancy.
Of course, just because you use healing magic doesn’t mean you can’t feel pain… Well, that didn’t matter because I was used to pain in the first place.
I proceeded slowly and patiently to figure out Meyer’s more intimate inner thoughts.
“There’s August and Anasta. What else could be dangerous to me when we can use all these healers?”
“You never know!”
Meyer shouted loudly. He turned and looked at me as if glaring at me.
On the other side of his gaze, as I looked closely, disgust quietly simmered.
