Ch.327Chapter 327. Again, A Brief Peace (3)

* * *

After enjoying an outing with Lady Irene after a long time.

Soon after, I found myself spending time with another woman.

This time it was… yes. The one with adorably cute pink low twintails, now an indispensable asymmetrical force for Serpina’s army.

“Swen niiim-!”

Running toward me from a distance with an innocent expression was Reika Nighthart.

“Huff, huff…”

“You worked hard, good job.”

I gently patted Reika’s back.

It was nice that she excitedly ran all the way from a distance upon seeing me… but it seemed she quickly tired herself out from running here.

Both she and I were weaklings when it came to stamina. If we were to compete in physical strength, Irene the lady knight would easily maintain first place among the three of us without much difficulty.

“Th-thank you… Swen niim.”

Despite dripping with sweat, she tried her best to smile brightly at me.

Only then did I properly take in her appearance.

She was wearing an extremely pure and elegant white dress. Made of a cool material, it was the perfect type of outfit to wear around this time of year.

As a bonus, her rather large chest had been bouncing non-stop while she ran here. …She must be wearing underwear, but it’s probably best not to mention the surprising amount of movement.

“Shall we get going?”

Just as I was about to move along with her.

“W-wait a moment-!!”

“?”

“S-Swen niim! I, I have something… huff, to ask you!”

“Take a breath first.”

“Huff, huff… ah, yes…”

She took out a water bottle from her waist and took a few sips.

“…The other day! How was it?!”

“The other day?”

“With Lady Irene! You went on a date, right?!”

“Ah…”

Recalling that time, I suddenly felt embarrassed and scratched my cheek with an awkward expression.

“Well… it was enjoyable.”

“And then?”

“Pardon?”

“Did, did anything… happen?!”

Reika was clenching her fists with both hands, looking at me with sparkling eyes.

What’s with this girlish gaze? What kind of answer is she expecting?

I thought about answering honestly, but that would be too embarrassing, so I gave a vague response.

“No… nothing special happened.”

“Is that so…?”

To her drooping figure, I teasingly asked:

“What exactly were you expecting…?”

“No, just… something, you know… I can’t go ahead of Lady Irene, so…”

“Pardon?”

At my question, Reika stammered for a while, clearly flustered.

“K-kikikiki… k-kiss, since we’ve kissed… at least, Lady Irene should also… kiss…!!!”

“…Why on earth would you reach that conclusion?”

“Well… I’m… your second wife, after all…!”

I couldn’t help but laugh at her flustered claim that she couldn’t get ahead of the first wife.

“Ah, o-of course! It’s only possible if I marry you, Swen, but still, that’s…”

The fact that even this nonsense seemed cute—I suppose I’ve somehow grown attached to Reika.

I wasn’t sure if I should tell her the shocking truth that Serpina was actually the first person I kissed—I didn’t even know my own feelings on the matter.

Anyway, it wasn’t unpleasant or uncomfortable.

She was acting this way out of consideration for me and Irene, in her own way.

“Well, you don’t need to try too hard. Things will progress naturally, so don’t worry too much.”

“N-naturally, is it…! That’s just like you, Swen…!”

I lightly patted Reika’s head and took her hand.

She seemed surprised… but now she calmly held my hand without refusing.

Both she and I had lowered our emotional barriers significantly since we first met.

“Shall we go then?”

“Yes…! P-please… escort me well today…!”

* * *

The first place I took Reika to was, naturally, the Nighthart mansion.

“Young lady, you’ve arrived…!!”

“Lady Reina! It’s been a while…!!”

After their reunion ended, I was able to hear some news about Ginor.

“That’s right. Swen, was it? You asked about him last time, didn’t you? The timing is perfect—we received news about the master that very evening.”

“Is that true?”

“Yes. It seems he’s doing well and safe.”

There was also news about Reika, which made her respond with embarrassment.

“He doesn’t need to worry about me so much…!”

From a third-party perspective, Ginor’s concern seemed more like serious contemplation about whether she could manage well rather than simple worry… but there was no need to hurt Reika’s feelings.

“Anything else?”

“Nothing special. It seems he’s doing fine under the new ruler he’s working for.”

The new ruler… that would be Luna.

With Ginor’s abilities, he would certainly have secured a position as a national advisor.

His contribution must have been significant in effectively utilizing the newly appeared mage and defeating the Karelia and Rolland armies one after another.

Afterwards, I enjoyed a light tea time with her after a long while.

Though I call it a “light tea time,” I spent the entire evening consuming sweets and cakes she continuously prepared, soaking in sugar.

I didn’t particularly like sweet foods, but I wanted to accommodate her mood as she used the familiar kitchen.

That way, both Reika and the maids were able to enjoy our time together.

After eating, we concluded our date by leisurely meditating together.

“Being able to close my eyes and feel mana with you again like this… makes me so happy. Hehe…”

“I enjoy it too.”

“I want to return to Einhart Castle soon and live peacefully with Lady Irene and you, Swen… the three of us together. For that to happen, I need to work harder…!”

It must have been unfamiliar for her to use magic to kill soldiers, but Reika admirably showed no signs of struggle and adapted to our situation.

Peace across the continent… huh.

My heart briefly grew complicated knowing that the person who would eventually bring that peace would be Luna, not Serpina… but now wasn’t the time to show that. I should focus entirely on Reika.

And so, I was able to find a different kind of rest than when I was with Lady Irene.

Whatever it was, it was an incredibly precious time for me.

* * *

During the rest of my vacation, I spent a very leisurely time as Serpina had instructed.

I invited both Reika and Irene to eat delicious food together, or quietly walked alone through Balhart’s downtown to observe the city’s situation.

Fortunately, the public sentiment among the territory’s residents was improving day by day.

Even though Yurie had squandered the territory’s assets in her later years, the speed at which public opinion was being recovered was remarkably fast—defying the expectation that many would still long for the Aeshus army after it had ruled this castle for so long.

Well, from my perspective, it was good that I didn’t have to see Serpina being demonized and unreasonably cursed by everyone.

Anyway, since Serpina truly never summoned me once during my vacation period, I was able to genuinely rest.

It had been a long time since I’d had such a leisurely period—not since I first possessed this body and spent time at the tavern before meeting Lunarian.

Finally, after a full week had passed.

“Swen. Your expression looks much better. Have you been well?”

“Thanks to your consideration, I was able to rest properly for once. I’ll work hard to repay you.”

“There’s no need to work hard or anything. With what you’ve already done for me, I don’t expect anything more from you.”

“How can you say that, my lord? Please don’t forget that the prophecy of my mind’s eye is still valid for you.”

“Hohoho, indeed. Seeing you flatter me, you’ve certainly regained your composure.”

Serpina laughed amusingly while covering her mouth, then looked down at me and said:

“Then let’s get straight to the point.”

“Yes. Please tell me anything.”

“A diplomatic envoy has arrived.”

“…Pardon?”

A diplomatic envoy?

Was there someone who would send diplomatic representatives to our army?

It may be odd to say this now, but Serpina’s army was essentially everyone’s enemy. Naturally, far from diplomacy, we would be fortunate if other countries simply refrained from condemning us, as no nation had formed any agreements with us.

“Where are they from?”

“The Hesna army.”

The Hesna army.

The southern nation with whom we now shared a border after destroying the Aeshus army and taking Raclaine Castle.

“When did you receive their proposal?”

“About a week ago.”

A week ago—so the envoy arrived as soon as I went on vacation?

I thought she could have just called me, but considering this might be Serpina’s own way of being considerate, I didn’t want to complain.

Serpina seemed to notice my thoughts and shook her head with a smile.

“The envoys have been receiving the best hospitality and resting. After their long journey, rest was certainly not a bad proposition for them either, so don’t worry.”

Although we shared a border, traveling from the central continent to the southern continent required quite a long journey.

One had to cross a massive river and traverse high mountain ranges to finally reach it.

This was precisely why the southern continent had been able to maintain its own order without being caught up in the continent-wide conflict.

“What are their demands?”

“An alliance.”

“An alliance?”

That’s all well and good, but what are they offering?

I was thinking that there was no reason for us to take their hand, when at that moment:

“If we accept, they will recognize me as emperor.”

“…Pardon?”

Seeing my dumbfounded face at this unexpected statement, Serpina smiled slightly and casually said:

“In other words, they’re saying they’ll submit to me—they want to become a vassal state.”