第１４９掘：健康診断、そして発覚 (Part1)
**Dig 149: Health Checkups and Revelations**
**Side: Seraria**
"…Honestly, just hearing it from you, I can hardly believe it."
"I know. I’m half-doubting it myself. But…"
"So, Yuki-sama, you’re saying it’s more impossible for Luna-sama’s statement to be a lie, is that it?"
"Yes. That’s why, Quar, I’m leaving things to you while I’m away. Though, I’ll make sure the situation is such that I can return immediately if needed."
"Do not worry. I will contact you via Call the moment any questions or issues arise."
"…You really have a habit of trying to get in touch even when we’re having some private time as a married couple."
"It is my duty, and it is for the sake of protecting Weed."
I am currently working with Quar, finalizing the necessary documents for our upcoming departure to the New Continent, as well as handling communications and handovers for each department.
Honestly, life with Yuki is never boring.
But, the New Continent, huh?
According to the information, magic power is so scarce there that very few people can manifest magic. And because of that lack of magic, monsters are extremely rare, which apparently leads the nations on the New Continent to engage in war almost every single day.
My husband vaguely compared it to this continent, but if there are no monsters—those natural disasters—to contend with, the competition for land must be even more intense than it is here.
I can feel my blood pumping.
Until now, as a princess, having attendants by my side was the norm. Since coming to Weed, thanks to my husband, I’ve become strong enough that solo combat is an option, but under his policy, I’ve mostly stayed in the background.
However, on the New Continent, those titles won’t matter.
I’ll have to manage on my own. Of course, my husband and the others will be there, but given the circumstances, we can’t openly borrow Weed’s power. I’ll likely be forming a party with my husband to go adventuring or pick fights with hostile nations.
My individual strength will truly be put to the test.
While I’m at it, I’d like to build a nation with my husband as the King—even if he’s reluctant about it.
I know his policy. But as a wife standing by his side, I hate the idea of him remaining a nameless figure who never steps onto the stage of history. As things stand, he’ll likely just be written as "Seraria’s husband, Yuki" in a single line of a history book. His true achievements will be attributed to me, Rurua, and Shera.
Every one of his wives hates that outcome. We believe our husband deserves much more recognition.
That’s why this trip to the New Continent is convenient. On this continent, Yuki couldn’t really cut loose due to various circumstances. But on the New Continent, those many restrictions are virtually non-existent.
Management will be difficult, I’m sure, but we could acquire a nation far larger than a small state like Weed. We couldn’t annex other territories here because we were surrounded by my deadbeat father’s Roschur and Gartz.
Then there’s the research into magic depletion due to globalization that Yuki mentioned.
"Magic depletion… I see. Let’s use this as our leverage."
I had a flash of inspiration as I jotted down "magic depletion" on a piece of paper.
My husband might dislike the idea of owning a country on the New Continent. But in the end, we have to investigate the magic depletion. Even if it’s smaller than our continent, it’s not something one or two people can investigate alone.
In other words, we will eventually need the help of some major power. If that’s the case, I should persuade my husband that we ought to have a nation we can control freely from the start.
No, come to think of it, the rulers of those major powers would never listen to our concerns about magic depletion. They wouldn't waste our combat potential on such things. Yes, no matter how I look at it, we need to build our own independent power base on the New Continent.
But if I can think of this, there’s no way my husband hasn’t already considered it. Is there a reason he’s holding back?
Well, I’ll ask him later.
Before I knew it, it was past 2:00 PM, and I stood up from my seat.
"What’s wrong? Oh, wait—today is the day for health checkups, isn't it?"
"That’s right. I haven't had a single injury or illness so far, but I suppose the results are showing, aren't they?"
"Yes. Yuki-sama has made these checkups mandatory for all residents every three months. It has been highly effective in early detection of ailments and identifying those who have been overworking despite being ill. Have you seen the report? The number of deaths in Weed, with its population of over ten thousand, over the last four months?"
"I know. Excluding adventurers, the deaths among Weed’s residents were five criminals and three newborns."
The number of criminals refers to the rapists I personally decapitated.
"Yes, that number is phenomenal. Even though there are few elderly people, there have been zero deaths among the working-age population. Yuki-sama’s hygiene management, the free medical care for Weed residents, and these checkups for early detection—it seems the results are already manifesting."
"Indeed. Furthermore, construction within Weed is still being handled via Dungeon Master authority. My husband said that because of that, there’s little heavy lifting, which has prevented fatal accidents. He mentioned that fatal accidents will likely increase in the future, though."
"I see, that makes sense. Even now, we have our fair share of serious injuries from handling heavy objects or blades. But because Yuki-sama has prepared countermeasures, some of those people would have surely died otherwise. You’re saying that in the future, those countermeasures might not be enough?"
"Exactly. If lumber used for building a house falls and hits someone, they’d be dead instantly before any treatment could be administered, right?"
"That is true. Oh, my apologies. We were supposed to be heading to the health checkup, weren't we?"
"Ahhh!! Because you kept talking, I’m going to be late!! No snacks for you today!!"
"Eh!?"
With that, I ran toward the location of the health checkups.
"Sorry. Kept you waiting."
"Not at all, we just got here ourselves."
"The handover stuff was quite a handful..."
"I’ve been working at the hospital, so it’s routine for me."
"I don’t really have anyone to hand over my duties to, anyway."
"I left Yuki-san’s guard duty to Kirue-san today, so it’s fine."
Today’s health checkup group consists of me, Ratz, Eris, Rurua, Deryu, and Ria. Since it would cause issues if all the wives left their posts at once, we’ve been split into groups over two or three days.
"Oh, Chii-nee-sama is here. Lilishe-sama is here too, so we can start right away. What would you like to do?"
Elju poked her head out of the examination room. Currently, Elju is the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces. But once we finish off the remnants of the Demon Lord’s army and return to Weed, she’ll have to rethink her career path.
For now, though, she is just Dr. Elju, who works at the hospital. She’s a completely different person from the Elju who stood on the podium to give speeches. She is Dr. Elju in disguise, known as one of the best doctors in the hospital.
"I have some handover matters to attend to, so I’d like to get this done quickly. Can I go now?"
"Understood. Then, Chii-nee-sama, please come this way. Everyone else, I’m sorry, but please wait as usual."
" " "Okay~" " "
I ended up getting my checkup ahead of everyone else. I feel bad for the others who were waiting. I’ll buy some sweets on the way home later.
"Yes, how are you feeling, Seraria-san?"