Declaration

‘What on earth did they talk about?’

It seemed like they were having a power struggle, with one side saying they would leave me in the Empire and the other saying they would take me to the Holy Nation, right up until I entered Kaikilia’s bedroom.

What on earth was said between them while I was with Minerva-nim that put me in a position to make this choice?

“So suddenly, are you saying?”

“The woman attached to your right arm requested it. She said that no matter how much the Emperor and the Popes squabbled with each other, they ultimately had to respect your choice. She said it was not reasonable for us to decide arbitrarily.”

The grip on my right arm tightened. I turned my head. Floretta was looking up at me with eyes that said, “I did well, didn’t I?” Her sparkling gaze pricked at me.

“Thus, I have handed you the handle. Choose, Delta. Where will you pledge yourself? To whom will you dedicate your loyalty?”

Kaikilia grabbed my collar and pulled me towards her. With both arms still held by Floretta and Luna, I was in a posture where my head was about to be buried in Kaikilia’s cleavage.

Although the Popes on either side wore utterly absurd outfits, Kaikilia’s uniform objectively revealed quite a bit. From her collarbone down to the center of her chest, it was completely open.

However, at this moment, I paid no attention to the cleavage that was about to engulf my head, nor her pale skin.

I only felt the firm grip on both my arms and the cold, golden Pupils shining directly in front of me.

‘……What should I say?’

The option of choosing only one side had been out of the question for a long time. If I had intended to do so, I would have made a decision immediately after the Popes began their protest in front of the Audience chamber after I returned from hell.

I had no intention of indiscriminately increasing the number of women, but at the same time, I had no intention of abandoning or giving up on the women I had already formed relationships with. If anything, I had tried my best to take care of them all, gritting my teeth.

And only after my thoughts reached this point did I realize that there was no need to worry.

Why should I agonize over the answer? I wasn’t going to lie, so I just needed to tell them exactly what I thought.

-Are you going to copulate now?

-Not here, Pareunari.

-Not copulate……?

-……Why do you look disappointed?

Some strange conversation was audible from a distance, but I deliberately ignored it. If I heard it, the Popes or Kaikilia must have heard it too, but those three weren’t paying any attention.

Kaikilia, who had received my gaze, seemed to think I had made up my mind and readily released her grip on my collar. Feeling the eyes of different colors focusing on me, I opened my mouth.

“Your Majesty, the Emperor.”

At my address to Kaikilia, a slightly softer expression appeared on her pale face.

“Are you calling me Emperor? That is-“

“It is not what Your Majesty is thinking.”

“……”

The soft expression vanished. Her face hardened. The smile that had bloomed disappeared, and killing intent filled her golden Pupils. The corners of her mouth turned coldly downwards.

“Is that so.”

It was a voice filled with a chill that wouldn’t be outdone even if you placed it in the middle of the South Pole.

“I understand your intention well. You choose the Holy Nation over me-“

“That is also not it, Your Majesty.”

When her next words were also denied, life returned to her golden eyes. Her Pupils widened like Pareunari, who had taught me the Dragon Tongue.

“……Now, what did you say?”

It seemed she had grasped the true meaning behind my words from just those two sentences.

I hadn’t chosen the Empire. But I hadn’t chosen the Holy Nation either. In that case, there were only two possible answers in this situation.

Not choosing either.

Or.

“I will pledge myself neither to the Empire nor to the Holy Nation. Because I will accept both Your Majesty the Emperor and His Holiness the Pope.”

Choosing both.

“You bastard……”

Kaikilia couldn’t finish her sentence. With that last incomplete word, silence descended upon the room.

Kaikilia, who was directly in front of me, froze with wide eyes, and Floretta and Luna, who had been pressing my arms between their chests on either side, were also the same. The pressure on my arms loosened slightly.

Minerva-nim, who had been listening from behind, was also like that. She had a face that showed half surprise, half interest. The corners of her eyes slowly curved into an arc.

Only Pareunari, who didn’t properly understand the importance of the titles of Emperor and Pope, had a question mark floating above her head.

“……Black Night Knights Captain.”

Kaikilia, who had been frozen for a long time, was the first to break the long silence.

“Do you know the weight of the words you just uttered?”

“Yes. I know.”

I answered calmly. Kaikilia’s face contorted, seeing that I, who had spoken, was not flustered at all, while they, who had heard, seemed far more flustered.

“You have just declared that you will embrace both the Empire and the Holy Nation. Do you truly think you can bear the weight of those words?”

“If I didn’t have the confidence, I wouldn’t have brought up such words in the first place.”

I retorted calmly. Once I had started, there was no turning back.

“Recall everything I have done, Your Majesty.”

Her contorted face became a little blank.

“Was there anyone before me who received the grace of both the Sun and the Moon? Was there anyone before me who killed the Demon King? Was there anyone who found the ancient scroll and delivered it to the Eternal Mage?”

“……”

“All those achievements are gathered in me, a single human. What reason would there be for me not to take both the Emperor and the Pope simultaneously?”

Objectively and subjectively, it was an utterly arrogant statement. However, no one here seemed to think I was arrogant or blasphemous.

Floretta and Luna trembled slightly upon hearing the words “Sun and Moon,” and Minerva-nim reacted to the words “ancient scroll” by nodding with a satisfied smile.

Kaikilia also showed no sign of denying it. Given her personality, if she had thought it differed from her own opinion, she would have torn me apart by any means necessary.

“Your Majesty will never give up on me, will you?”

“Indeed, I will not.”

“I am the same. Whether it is Your Majesty the Emperor or His Holiness the Pope. I have not the slightest intention of giving up on either side.”

This was not a temporary measure to escape the current situation, nor an unfounded exaggeration, nor a recklessly inflated bluff. It was merely a declaration of an utterly natural choice, and the path I must walk from now on.

Since all three of them had no intention of giving up on me, and I also had no intention of abandoning the women I had embraced so far, what else could I do? I must embrace them all.

“Delta.”

A sweet voice was heard, replacing the dazed Kaikilia, who seemed to be in great shock.

Floretta, who was not merely holding my arm but had also leaned her head on my shoulder, was looking up at me with a very shy expression.

“May I take your words to mean exactly what I think they mean?”

“That’s right, Floretta.”

I also changed my form of address. My relationship with them had already been completely exposed, and since the Popes had already said there was no need to hide it anymore, there would be no need to be formal.

The Popes would probably prefer me to act this way, too.

“……Delta.”

A sweet voice was heard from the opposite side as well. Luna, who had also begun to lean her head on my shoulder like Floretta, was looking up at me with a face filled with mixed emotions.

“I apologize for saying this. Of course, I do not distrust you at all. I am merely worried about you……”

Her words trailed off softly.

“If it were other women, it would be fine whether it costs tens or hundreds. However, you said you would embrace both the Emperor of the Aeternum Empire and the Pope of the Raphaella Holy Nation. Do you truly have the confidence not to be crushed by that weight?”

“I do.”

I answered sharply. In a situation like this, I absolutely had to say I could do it. If I answered ambiguously or with a lack of confidence, I would only lose face and gain nothing.

Moreover, I hadn’t said this with baseless confidence either.

First, I had directly communicated with one of the Holy Nation’s gods and even received their power, so the Holy Nation side would naturally permit it. In the Holy Nation, the Pope’s word is law, and those Popes were acting like this.

Then, all that remained was to persuade Kaikilia. Kaikilia had shown certain behaviors when she was half out of her mind in bed, and it was also possible to ask Minerva-nim for help.

Although it was truly a last resort, I could even use the method of forcibly putting her to bed.

“……Hoo-hoo.”

Floretta, who heard my confident words, embraced me with a wide smile. It was a smile so bright and dazzling that I wondered if it was even possible to laugh so radiantly without a single wrinkle.

“You should, of course you should. Indeed, if you are a man who declares that you will take both of us sisters, then you should naturally possess such ambition.”

As if to show that their open encouragement of polygamy was not empty words, she seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the current situation.

“Ah, what a wonderful person he is. Indeed, the Sun was not wrong. The Moon was not wrong. They did not forget us, and sent down such a worthy person to be served.”

Unlike Floretta, who smiled as refreshingly as the Sun, true to her title as the Pope of the Sun, Kaikilia, whose surprise had somewhat subsided, had returned to her usual overbearing and blunt face.

“Can you keep the words you uttered, Delta?”

It was a brief question, but the meaning contained within it was by no means simple. The fact that she asked such a question instead of opposing my words virtually meant tacit acceptance.

That alone was enough.

“Didn’t I just tell you?”

“……”

Kaikilia looked at me with a very complex gaze, then looked at Floretta and Luna who were clinging to my sides, and then moved a little closer.

And then, she tightly embraced me with force.

I had never imagined Kaikilia would make such a blatant display of affection. I looked down. Since her face was buried in my chest, I couldn’t confirm her expression.

Instead, I heard a mumbling sound muffled by her chest.

“If that is your resolve, then go ahead and do as you see fit. However, I will not be easy. Remember that.”

Considering what had happened in bed, I wondered if it was just an empty bluff, but I held my tongue. It’s much better to make such pride be denied by her own mouth someday.

After that mumble, Kaikilia released her embrace and turned around. Her buttocks, encased in an extremely short uniform skirt and garter belt, moved suggestively. Her retreating figure gradually moved further away.

A brief conversation took place just before she passed Minerva-nim.

-Didn’t you say that if there was a man who could handle you, you would naturally submit to him? It seems the moment has come to keep your promise, child.

-Shut up, Minerva-nim. Be quiet.

Even as Kaikilia’s retreating figure completely disappeared and Minerva-nim chuckled and approached, the Popes were still embracing my arms with happy smiles.

“I saw it well, child. What a splendid ambition.”

“……Thank you, Minerva-nim.”

“I also have a question for you, child. Is that alright?”

“Yes?”

“Since you said you would choose both the Empire and the Holy Nation, it would still be valid even if a few more people were included, wouldn’t it?”

“……Yes?”

An ominous sensation tingled down my spine.

It was already confirmed that at least three more people would be added, excluding Kaikilia, Floretta, and Luna. These three were Rije, Aurora, and Nyx, who had come over from another world for me.

But somehow, Minerva-nim’s words didn’t seem to refer to those three.

“……Why are you asking such a question, Minerva-nim?”

“Hoo-hoo. Well. Why do you ask?”

Minerva-nim left, leaving only those words. Pareunari followed behind her.

“Delta.”

When we were left all alone, Luna cautiously called my name. It was a strange feeling to be called by my name after always being called Honored Guest-nim.

“Why?”

“I have something to show you.”