240: Direct Strategy ※

This story is told from Joharis' perspective.

Please note.

"So be it. I shall temporarily entrust this place to the Empress, and I will take Heivii and Sata with me to a different location."

With those words from the Emperor, the Emperor, the Crown Prince, Sata, the female artificial intelligence, and whatever dense presence could hardly be described otherwise, all moved away from near me.

To be honest, I'm relieved.

Sata and even Memoqsi, let alone Vee-sama, seemed oblivious, but ever since we entered this greenhouse, I've had this constant feeling that something was here, and I couldn't relax at all.

If we're being separated now, it's probably because Sata was the intended target.

Anyway, I didn't sense any hostility, so Sata should be fine.

"Alright, Vee. I'll get straight to the point."

With that, I'll prioritize dealing with the situation right in front of me.

It was Her Majesty the Empress who spoke first.

She stared at Vee-sama with a serious expression, and Vee-sama, in turn, met her gaze with equal seriousness.

"What do you think of Sata? Do you like her? If so, what exactly does that mean?"

She went straight to the point—no beating around the bush...

And how did Vee-sama respond?

"I do like her. In the sense that I wish to make her my companion."

"「「「!？」」」"

Another straight-to-the-point reply, huh...

And upon hearing Vee-sama's words, a ripple of unease spread among some of the personnel gathered around.

The fact that the Empress, Vee-sama's mother, and her ladies-in-waiting remained unfazed... well, that was expected, really.

As for us, Memoqsi, and Dr. Mizeon, it was practically common knowledge, so naturally, we weren't surprised.

"However, while one must consider the other party's feelings and the risk of misjudging based on appearances, Satu still lacks extensive social experience. I believe it would be unwise for me to take aggressive action at this point, so I kindly ask that you refrain from interfering inappropriately, Your Majesty."

"I see. Caution is certainly a good thing. However, being overly cautious can cause one to miss the opportunity. Since Satou has reached adulthood, I believe a bit more initiative would be perfectly fine. After all, in today's world, going through one or two divorces isn't really a major issue."

"It's a problem. I have my own position to consider, and given Sata's abilities, being at odds with her would be problematic. Moreover, considering Sata's position and personality, we wouldn't have any way to deal with those who interfere unnecessarily..."

"Interference, you say?"

Ah, the Empress and Lady Vee's mother chuckled slightly.

Even Dr. Mizeon was inexplicably smiling.

This... was probably a trap.

"There's no need to worry about interference—since there's also today's tea gathering, I'm sure things will work out somehow."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Dr. Mizeon, who could almost be considered Satā's parent, is here, and Dr. Mizeon is connected to the Iseimeetsu viscount family. That means there's already a connection between Satā and the Iseimeetsu viscount family, so arranging one or two adoptions shouldn't be a problem, should it?"

Ah, yes.

In fact, there's already an understanding behind the scenes among Dr. Mizeon, Viscount Iseimeetsu, and Her Majesty the Empress, to the point where they've already agreed at the guardian level on the possibility of adopting Satā and Viscount Iseimeetsu when necessary.

In other words, it seems the Emperor and Empress deliberately allowed Prince Shinku Bilibrim's interference with Dr. Mizeon precisely because they foresaw this direction.

Hmm, adopting an artificial human as an orphan in a regular family... well, it's not entirely unreasonable depending on the circumstances, and I've heard nobles value connections between families, so it's not really that strange.

More than that, the way they calmly exploit even the enemy's schemes and turn them to their own advantage really reminds me of the hidden depths of the Imperial Star Vanilla Sid.

"Fortunately, in this matter, Lord Iseimeetsu is likely seen as someone aligned with the Vee side, so his household won't be likely to cause trouble for you or Your Majesty after the marriage is arranged. Still, both sides will receive appropriate benefits. Personally, I consider him the ideal family for adoption."

"I see..."

Well, at least this marriage seems to offer nothing but advantages for our side.

Then we'll just stay quiet about it.

"Well, that's something we can address if the need arises. It's not a bad option to demonstrate your strength by knocking down anyone who tries to interfere, especially someone like Satā and Vī. After all, whether we move forward or not is entirely up to you."

"..."

Still, Her Majesty the Empress and Lady Vī are already assuming interference will happen.

So, whether the conversation moves forward or not, it's certain that while we're staying at Teisei Vanilla Sid, those kinds of people will come around and cause trouble, right?

Yeah, I mean, given Lady Vī's appearance, it wouldn't be surprising if a man or two, blinded by looks, started getting overly ambitious.

In that case, our jobs as guards and drivers are likely to get a bit busier.

"By the way, what exactly is it about Sata that attracts you, Vee? I'd like to hear more details about that. It seems Nei hasn't mentioned anything about it yet."

"Yes, indeed. As a mother, I'd be curious to know as well."

"Your Majesty!? Mother!?"

But seriously, is it really about whether or not they want to marry each other...?

Since we're slime-kind, we could reproduce asexually if we really wanted to, so that's no issue at all.

For now, let's savor the tea and sweets slowly.

Neither our story nor Sata's seems likely to end anytime soon.

04/02 Correction of typo