第１２３８堀：彼女たちに決断を (Part1)
Chapter 1238: A Decision for Them
A Decision for Them
Side: Seraria
"Welcome back."
I had gone to the entrance to greet my husbands as they returned, but...
"We're... hoooome..."
The greeting that returned to me was completely exhausted and drawn out.
"Did you end up talking with Eupia and Popuri after that?"
"Well, yeah. Though, Seraria, aren't you tired from participating in the meeting yourself?"
"Well, I suppose I was a little tired, but... the main point of this meeting was just handing over documents, wasn't it? Detailed explanations are for the bureaucrats to handle; I’m just a figurehead, after all. I just had to sit in a chair, flip through some papers, and sip tea."
Though, even just doing that can be tiring in its own way.
In that sense, being a figurehead isn't exactly easy.
Still, I’m sure it was much easier than it was for my husband, who looked completely drained right before my eyes.
"Even so, you must have talked with the kings of various nations, right? How did that go?"
"You know how it is, don't you? It was all talk about wanting to expand the academy as much as possible—things that can't be helped right now. If there were some cheat code to summon as many people as you like using DP, that would be one thing, but Weed’s stamina and resources are limited. Nothing can move forward until we narrow down what exactly is being taught and calculate the precise number of exchange students."
It’s true that we held the first meeting, but for now, it was all at a conceptual level, and there was almost no talk of real substance.
Actually, those are the kinds of places where people like my husband, who hold the numbers and the information, have the hardest time.
"More than anything, you were the ones talking endlessly because you were the ones explaining—the coordinators, in other words. We heads of state just finished our greetings and looked through the documents before leaving. After that, we had a luncheon and dispersed."
Yes, Lowell from Gartz came, too.
She seemed unable to grasp the explanations at the start of the meeting and was rolling her eyes, so we took her aside for a separate discussion.
"You make it sound easy, but that must have been tough for you, too. Was there any trouble at that luncheon?"
Goodness. My husband is as concerned about us as ever.
Even when he’s this exhausted himself, he puts us first.
Yes, it makes me happy.
Still...
"That was fine. If I were truly exhausted, I’d be eating rice crackers in the living room or already asleep by now."
"I see. Well, don't push yourself too hard, my Queen."
"That’s my line, my Lord. Now, can we stop talking at the entrance and go inside?"
"Fair point."
With that, we moved to the living room.
Well, calling it a living room is a bit of a stretch; it’s more of a banquet hall.
"Oh, welcome back, brother."
"Welcome back, Yuki-san."
Ratz and Eris seemed to have already been relaxing in the banquet hall, and they waved when they noticed us.
We waved back and sat down on the cushions.
"Would you like some tea?"
"Ah, green tea, please."
"I’m in the mood for green tea today, too."
Just then, Kirue appeared from nowhere to take our drink orders.
She really is an all-purpose maid, as always.
"By the way, Orelia and the others aren't with you today?"
"Ah, we were together until the café, but they said they didn't need to be escorted all the way home after just yesterday."
"Since all three of them have dorms, they’d naturally be hesitant to visit every single day."
Oh my, from now on, I’ll have to make sure they visit often so they can become my husband’s 'hands and feet' in both name and reality.
That is for their own security, and it is also our ideal.
Honestly, when it comes to the operation of Weed alone, my husband doesn't need any more aides than he already has.
However, when it comes to his primary business—the 'investigation of magical depletion'—that is a different story.
He inevitably needs the foundation he has built up until now, and he will need to interact with various nations even more in the future.
Recently, that side of things has become too much to handle, which is why we welcomed Orelia, Yayui, and Hobis in addition to Fiora.
Honestly, it’s not every country, but to think they would try to negotiate directly with my husband without going through me—the 'Weed'—they really are taking liberties.
Well, I suppose that just means my husband is finally being properly recognized by the world.
Yes, this 'husband' of mine, who is currently relieved to be drinking green tea right in front of me, originally had no interest in power or money.
He was brought here by that useless goddess for the sake of 'investigating and solving the magical depletion phenomenon' in this world, and since it was impossible to act as an individual, he is only using the power of the 'nation' system out of necessity.
That is precisely why he likely thought he could leave the administration of the country and the dealings with other nations to us, the original inhabitants of this world, but as the scale of the matters he is involved in has grown, that has become impossible.
And as a result of his own rising fame, we have reached this current situation.
It is a good thing that my husband is being recognized, and I am happy for him, but there are truly so many idiots who come fawning over that 'name.'
That is why it is necessary to firmly secure the perimeter.
Sigh, originally, Ratz and Eris, who are right in front of me, were supposed to finish their public duties of running this country and become my husband’s exclusive aides, but with the current scale and state of Weed, that isn't possible.
It is true that we have raised successors and handed over the representative positions, but the title of 'First Representative of Weed' and their actual capabilities still echo throughout the nations.
Even the fact that they were originally 'slaves' has no meaning now.
On the contrary, the early slave members like Ratz and Eris are still recognized as 'brilliant and important figures of Weed,' and perhaps because they think there won't be any messy baggage if they were former slaves, they still receive invitations from other countries.
So, while not quite to the extent of my husband, their name value has become something extraordinary.
Perhaps because I was lost in such thoughts, I must have had a stern expression, as my husband looked at me with concern...
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing. I was just thinking about how Weed has truly grown so large, and how that has made things even busier."
"Ah, I'm sorry about that."
"My, you don't need to apologize. It just means Weed is developing, and you're getting closer to your goal, aren't you?"
"That's true. It's a world of difference compared to the beginning. I didn't know what would happen when Seraria's sister, Elju, came rushing in."
"I never thought I would find a marriage partner when the country was in such ruins, either. Fufu, now that I think about it, that was quite a dramatic encounter, wasn't it?"
Yes, it truly was dramatic.
After all, I never imagined that the place I would escape to after being saved would be a 'dungeon.'
"Well, yeah. I never thought that of the possibilities I was just throwing out there, the worst one would actually come true."
"That's right. People around us call you a prophet, but you were just stating 'possibilities' one by one, not just making guesses or wishful thinking."
Yes, even back then, my husband foresaw 'my assassination,' but he had only conveyed it to Elju’s guard, Oriel, as one of many possibilities.
But because she thought it wouldn't hurt to be cautious, she prepared for it, and as expected, that idiot made his move.
As we were reminiscing about such nostalgic things, I noticed that Fiora, who was at the same table, had been listening to our conversation with rapt attention.
"Oh, are you interested?"
"Yes. I have admired Seraria-sama as the 'Valkyrie of Roschur,' and I have heard rumors that Yuki-sama saved Seraria-sama with his wisdom, which led to him becoming her husband, but that is all I know. I would love to hear more about Ratz-sama and Eris-sama as well."
"Ah, I'd like to hear that, too."
"Y-yeah. I, I'd like to hear it too."
Oh my, it seems Wazfi and Nairua are curious as well.