Ch.97Improvement #3

When did I start thinking about the issue of succession?

Was it from a long time ago, or was it a sudden thought that came to me recently?

Or was it perhaps the result of Andy subtly planting the idea when he asked me about succession?

I couldn’t look inside Ise’s mind, so there was no way to know.

I only knew one thing for certain: the question he posed struck right at the core.

Even though he knew I held the dominant position in our marriage, he deliberately made Helena the subject of his question.

In a situation like this, he should have asked if I had any intention of having a child, but he didn’t.

“Before I answer, I’d like to ask one thing. Did Andy put you up to this?”

“Hmm. He told me about your conversation from early this morning.”

We had trust in each other as family, and Andy, being broadly part of the family as well, seemed to believe I wouldn’t do him harm.

Otherwise, he would have made up some plausible excuse like it suddenly occurred to him.

I nodded, thinking it was entirely possible.

He hadn’t asked me to keep it a secret, nor was there any need to.

“I see. Then I should answer the question my father-in-law has posed.”

I understand what he’s worried about.

Helena’s obsession with me is already concerning enough; perhaps he fears she might develop similar feelings toward a child.

That must be what he’s thinking.

“Of course we will have children. But I asked her to wait, to postpone it for later.”

It’s an undeniable fact that I suggested we have children later.

So I answered with complete composure.

“You asked her to wait?”

“I understand that looking at Helena’s age, the timing is ripe. I also understand the desire to have an heir quickly to solidify our foundation. However, I’m not mentally prepared. I’m still just a sixteen-year-old boy after all.”

When Ise tilted his head questioningly, I answered sincerely.

The main reason was that I wasn’t mentally prepared to become a father, and I added that I wanted to enjoy more time just the two of us.

This was something Helena had also accepted willingly.

“Really… is that all? That child, Helena, could she possibly… toward her own child…”

“Helena’s obsession may be great, but it doesn’t go that far.”

Helena being jealous of her own child.

It was plausible enough that I understood why Ise was flustered as he spoke.

But Helena had long ago concluded that she would naturally have a child with me.

“So, please don’t worry too much. Things might be delayed due to my stubbornness, but I’m not opposed to it. Rather, I welcome it.”

“I see… Understood.”

With those final words, I bowed my head and, with Ise’s permission, left the room.

As I was about to exit, I caught a glimpse of his relief, and I too felt fortunate.

I’m glad I spoke.

I’m glad I didn’t say more.

These two contradictory thoughts crossed my mind, reminding me of past events.

It was after our second intimate encounter at the Krauser mansion, following our first experience at the Barkan County estate.

During our first time, I was too overwhelmed to say a word, but by the second time, I had some composure.

I had adapted somewhat to the afterglow.

At that time, I had asked her how she felt about children, and Helena’s eyes sparkled as she replied that she wanted to have them right away.

If the conversation had ended there, I might have just accepted it, but unfortunately, there was more.

She said the child would be precious to her not because she would bear it in pain and raise it with love, but solely because it would contain my essence.

That was Helena’s sentiment.

At first glance, it seemed reasonable enough.

Loving her husband and loving the child that carries his blood didn’t seem problematic.

She didn’t show any signs of jealousy toward the idea of a child we would create together.

However, I realized that her perspective on children was fundamentally different.

She showed attachment merely because my touch would be involved, because I would have created it.

It was no different from the way she looked at her wedding dress, which is still carefully preserved in our room, occupying a corner every day.

In other words, to Helena, a child would be like a gift I made—essentially treating it like an object.

If she had maintained that mindset while giving birth and raising a child, we would have found ourselves in a situation difficult to describe…

“Huff.”

Having worked hard to educate and change her thinking, at least somewhat, there didn’t seem to be much to worry about now.

.

“Are you saying we should regularly rotate the slaves?”

In the study of the Krauser mansion.

Eileen, who had come at my command, asked with a tilted head.

I had invited her, thinking that as a village chief, she might know something about Dark Elf history.

And incidentally, to give her some orders.

“Yes. From now on, we’ll rotate the slaves every two months. And add one more to the two we currently send from each village.”

I didn’t know how many elves lived in each village, but adding one more wouldn’t cause much harm.

Moreover, since they primarily used magic and lived long lives, there were no restrictions.

No requirement to bring only strong men or women.

“Yes, I have no choice but to comply. But may I ask why you’re doing this?”

She didn’t seem to have major complaints about the number of slaves, but was very curious about the exchange.

I thought perhaps she couldn’t understand why I wanted to go through the trouble of exchanging slaves rather than simply increasing their number.

“All of you elves must pay for your crimes. If I only use those who have come here as slaves, that would be impossible.”

“…I see.”

Send different elves from each village every time to make them pay, and if everyone has taken a turn as a slave, the cycle starts over.

Eileen seemed to be calculating the situation she would face due to my reasonable justification.

I could almost hear the sound of her eyes rolling in thought.

“I understand. I will send slaves according to the schedule.”

“Good. Then let’s move on to the next topic.”

“Ah… about the history of Dark Elves, was it?”

Eileen, who was about to leave, seemed to suddenly remember and sat back down on the sofa.

Since I had sent a letter to this Ganf asking her to look into Dark Elf history, I thought she might have done at least some basic research.

“I understand why you’re interested in Dark Elf history… but you’re quite proactive.”

“What, do you have a problem with that?”

I put my arm around Ellen’s waist, who was sitting next to me, and twisted the corner of my mouth in a deliberately vile manner.

This caused Ellen’s cheeks to flush red, and a coldness appeared in the eyes of Helena and Eileen who were watching.

One showed jealousy, the other contempt.

Just when I thought things were getting better, their necks are becoming stiff again.

It was a fresh reminder of how strong-willed these Ganf people are.

“N-no. Not at all. I apologize.”

But when I lowered my voice and glared at her, she bowed her head in fear.

She seemed to recall the various torments she had suffered, such as having her connection with spirits cut off.

“Please… forgive my rudeness.”

“I will. What’s important now is hearing about the elf history you’ve researched.”

“…Yes. I’ll tell you right away.”

Eileen raised her head, straightened her posture, and began to speak.

Children born from elf marriages are naturally elves, but occasionally elves with ashen skin are born.

These are Dark Elves, and they are more likely to be born when strongly influenced by the mana that drifts on moonlit nights.

The mana of the moon.

It was strangely interesting, similar to the division of yang and yin energies.

“Dark Elves are few in number and rarely born… but they are consistent. As if it were predetermined, they maintain a thin but long lineage.”

And then came the explanation for the part I most wanted to know.

Born Dark Elves are aggressive, which makes them prone to friction with other elves who have different temperaments.

They have high pride, but perhaps because they live in groups in the forest among their own kind?

She said that the high pride of the Ganf people rarely escalates into pride battles.

But Dark Elves were different, and this led to various disturbances.

They lacked the ability to adapt to the relatively quiet elf society, and their frequent rebellions often escalated into fights.

Specific examples are recorded in detail in the elf history books, she said.

In other words, Dark Elves were treated as filth because they were seen as troublemakers.

Outcasts in elf society.

That’s what Dark Elves were, but from my perspective, it seemed like it might simply be due to a lack of appropriate education methods for different temperaments.

These high-nosed fellows didn’t seem to think they needed to change their education and principles.

Quiet ones need to be handled one way, easily angered ones another.

Not knowing this is probably why they ended up in this state.

“Originally… no, never mind.”

Eileen opened her mouth with a displeased expression, then closed it.

From the look of it, she was on the verge of blurting out something irritating without realizing it.

“Good. You’ve done well. You may leave now.”

Since I roughly understood the reason, there was nothing more to hear, so I sent Eileen out.

Normally, I would have let her stay overnight and depart in the morning, but I didn’t feel like being considerate to a Ganf.

It might be self-justification, but I thought I was being considerate enough in the current situation.

“Aggressive, huh? Does Ellen think so too?”

With the Ganf gone, there was no need to put on airs with tense shoulders.

So I relaxed my expression and spoke as usual.

“…Hmm. It seems so. Above all, by the time I was in the forest, the idea that Dark Elves were filth had been widespread for a long time… and that made me feel more frustrated and irritable. Though I couldn’t show it outwardly…”

“You couldn’t show it outwardly because you were outnumbered. If you had, they might have done more than just show contempt…”

“Yes. It’s exactly as you say, Lord Jion.”

Fortunately, my thoughts weren’t wrong.

Ellen was remarkably calm for someone recalling a dark past.

One would expect anyone, regardless of age, to become depressed when recalling unpleasant memories…

“But I’m lucky to be living so happily like this now… I’m truly happy.”

Perhaps because she’s happy now, Ellen smiled very brightly.

It made me feel proud, as if I had saved someone who was on the brink of death.

“Yes. I’m glad.”

I stroked Ellen’s shoulder lightly to comfort her, then turned my gaze toward Helena.

This startled Helena, who had been glaring with narrowed eyes.

I suppose it’s understandable since I suddenly turned my eyes to her.

“Helena.”

“Huh? W-what is it? Tell me anything.”

“What do you think about relocating all the Dark Elves here?”

As the question landed, Helena’s initially flustered expression settled into a calm gaze.

She appeared to be thinking seriously, as the issue I raised could be considered significant.

“It’s not just out of sympathy. It seems feasible now that we can develop without spending money by using slaves.”

“Yes. There are about one hundred and twenty Dark Elves. It’s awkward to accept that many into the castle at once, so now might be the right time. Even though our territory has a favorable view of Dark Elves… it’s still over a hundred.”

Since what Helena said wasn’t wrong, I nodded silently.

That’s what I thought too.

“What’s another reason?”

“Dark Elves are still elves. I think accepting them into our territory would greatly strengthen our military power. It’s also good to prepare while we’re at it.”

In the distant future, after I die, there’s no telling how things will unfold.

I wanted to accept Dark Elves into the territory in preparation for that time.

Helena seemed to be seriously considering my words, finding them reasonable.

After a moment of comfortable silence, Helena slowly opened her mouth.

“In a way, it looks like you’re forming a magic battalion… and while trying to prepare for dangers, we might become a target of vigilance. Honestly… I’m not sure if the benefits outweigh the risks.”

“Neither am I.”

“But…”

But, since we don’t know, I’ll completely follow your words.

Helena said this with a smile that somehow seemed enlightened.