SIDE: Leons.
　It's been three months since my sister arrived.
　Sam asked me to wait for the dragon dish at ...... and we're going to unveil it when she returns to school.
　Well, I don't know when she'll be back.

　For the last three months, she's been free.
　When I say free, she was helping me and Elsie with their work, teaching magic to the kids at the orphanage with Shelly and the others and holding a sword with the ...... knights.
　No ...... sister, I knew you had good grades, but I didn't know you were so versatile.
　From paperwork to swordsmanship, she's perfectly ripe for the job.
　She learned swordsmanship from her grandfather when she was living at home in the imperial city.
　I didn't think that even if she was a grandmother, she had a female sister train him in that hellish training: .......

　But she was strong.
　I was surprised that most of the knights, including Hermann, were killed by the way she covered her muscles with magic.
　It wasn't a massive amount of magical power like me, Shelly, and Lou, not a gobbledygook using special skills, but strength using technology.
　The timing of his sword swing, the timing of his magic, the way he used it, everything was lean and clean.

　It's hard to believe that he didn't have attributeless magic.
　She moved like that.
　Really? How and when have you been practicing?
　The duchess is supposed to be busy.

　Leaving aside my superhuman sister, I'm standing at the entrance of the underground city.
　In front of a great many of my fellow townsfolk.

　Today, half of the underground city is open to the public.
　The commercial district and the auction room at the entrance.
　The auction room was originally just a converted black market auction house, so it was ready to go.
　The rest of the facilities I'm thinking of are large and unique, so it'll take time to build them, so the underground city won't be completed for a while.
　Still, it's amazing that we were able to open the commercial area to the public in three months.
　Thanks to Elsie's hard work.

　Well, let's get to the speech: .......
　But still, I didn't expect to see not only Dad and Mom ...... but also the Emperor .......
　Apparently, Mom and Dad came just to have a look at their son's domain.
　Apparently, the emperor is on an official mission to witness the beginning of a new city.

　I understand your father and mother, but isn't the emperor's excuse too forced?
　Hah, I don't want to give a speech with my moms watching me: .......

I am pleased to announce that a part of the underground city that we have been developing for about a year now will be open to the public. Initially, it was expected to take at least another six months to open to the public. The reason why the plan has been accelerated so far is because of the people of Holland's trade association including Chairman Elsie who achieved a revolutionary production rate of magic tools, the people of the territory who worked on the construction of the factory and the installation of the street lights, and the merchants who willingly lent their support to the plan of the underground city, which may or may not succeed. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. And I look forward to working with you. Together we'll make this city as rich as any city on earth!

　crackling sound

　The speech was over, and as I bowed my head, there was a huge round of applause.
　Relieved by the applause, I got off the stage.
　The work of the day is done.

　This was over, and the underground city was finally open to the public.
　And now my second job of the day begins.
　Shelly, Elsie and I will lead the emperors through the streets.

"Ho ho ho. The rumored head of the finest trade association in the empire is even prettier than they say.
　The emperor said that to Elsie when they first met .
　A bit intimidating ...... Is he testing Elsie?

Thank you. I too was amazed to see His Majesty more interesting than the paintings I've had the pleasure of seeing. You are indeed the ruler of the empire.
　Elsie didn't change her face at all, but said smoothly.
　How can you come up with such a word? That's just as expected, you've been in customer service every day.

Is that so. You don't have to talk so hard. Official business is just a pretext, so you can just talk a little more comfortably.
　The emperor seemed pleased. Does that mean I'm going to pass?

All right, Leo, let's take you down there.

Yes, sir.
　I was so careless that I hurriedly began to show him around.

"We'll start with the commercial district. This one has a rule of displaying defective merchandise that we don't sell on the ground in our stores.

What's the bargain bin?

For example, a magic tool that is usable but cannot be used because of the damage it causes, or a vegetable that looks bad but is still edible. You can sell them here for less than the list price.
　It's just that we can't sell anything we can't legally sell on the ground like we could on the black market.

I see. That's going to attract a lot of adventurers who like things cheap. Was it Elsie's idea?

No, it was Leo's idea.
　No, no, no, we came up with this together, so it's not really my idea, is it?

Oh, they call you Leo?
　I was about to shove Elsie in her face when my mom looked at me with a smirk on her face.

'Oh, I'm sorry,'

Oh, no, no. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. I was just trying to make fun of Leo, so don't worry about it, just call me Leo.



'Yes, yes ......'
　Elsie's face, which had been so bright and cheerful a moment ago, was now slightly broken and red.
　She must have been too embarrassed to call me Leo-kun in front of Mom and Dad.

I guess so. Even the emperor would have to ask Elsie to marry Leo-kun.

Que, marriage: ......
　Stop him!　Because Elsie's face is already so red!
　I mean, I'm starting to get embarrassed myself!

Oh, God. Don't tease your father, too.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Well, I guess I'll just ask the future wife to show me around.
　The emperor said this and put his hand on Shelly's shoulder and walked away, leaving us alone.

'Huh, Mrs.?　And I don't blame you.
　Hey, wait!　I'm grateful that you're willing to take on the task of guiding the emperor around, but look around you!

Hey!

No. Give them a minute alone. We don't get a lot of alone time with him.
　When I tried to stop her, she stopped me.

Isn't that dangerous for you to go to ......?
　I know that with the emperor and the princess, they don't have a lot of time alone together, but it's definitely not safe!

You'll be fine. There's a decent-sized escort for you and Damien and his friends to hide behind.

Oh, really. So you think you can handle it?
　As long as you're escorted by Special Forces, you'll be okay.

So, Elsie, why don't you come with me for a tour of the city?

What?
　Just as I was convinced that I was going to walk the streets alone with the Emperor and Shelly, Mom grabbed Elsie's hand and went away.


'So, what do you want to do, alone with me?
　This is all just to get me and my dad alone, right?

There's nothing to it. Let's have a little father-son bonding time, shall we? Yeah!　You have a big auction house, right?　Take me there.

Really?　Oh, well. Auctions.
　Yeah ...... was I thinking too much?
　My father's broad smile made me think of that.


"Oh!　There are a lot of people here . It's the first day, so what's the big deal?
　From the topmost private room on the top floor of the VIP section, Dad was excited like a child looking down.

The highlight of the day is a whole dragon.

What?

I mean, a whole Red Dragon.

Oh, really?　No way, you, again: ......

Don't tell your mother, okay?
　What's a man's promise to a man?

d*mn, that's embarrassing. Well, I guess that's another father-son chat.
　Father and son. You're right, sharing your secrets with Mom is like father and son.
　Well, yeah, I guess we are.

But that may be the first time I've had the chance to be a father to Leo.

Yeah?
　I used to let him hold me when I was a baby, though, right?

''Yeah . I was busy running the estate by myself in earnest when Leo was born, and I wasn't able to play with you. The next thing I know, I've grown up to be this fine.

Well, I've been busy, I guess.
　When I became a lord myself, I found out that lords have a lot of work to do.
　It's no wonder you're not prepared for children.

''Is that so?　But for me, it was kind of lonely. Because before I knew it, Leo was getting stronger and stronger on his own, and he was on his own before I could do anything fatherly about it.

That's not true. It's not because of my grandfather's training that I became strong alone. Because my grandfather trained me, I could take on dragons without fear. And most importantly, Shelly, Leena and Belle were by my side the whole time, and that's why I've come this far.
　Of course, there's Hermann, Frank, and too many others to name.

Yeah. Sounds like there were a lot of people behind your son's back that you didn't know about.

What's going on?　My dad was always supposed to be more upbeat, wasn't he?


　Even though we're talking about how my son has grown up without me knowing it, aren't you being too heartfelt earlier?

'Haha ...... I was actually going to tell you about it much later. ....... As Kara often tells me, it seems I'm not cut out for hiding things from you after all.

Are you hiding something?　I knew you wanted to talk to me about something, so you were alone with me?

Yeah. ...... Yeah. I need to talk to you about something.

What?
　What's the point of Dad having to say that with such a serious face?
　Actually, Fiona and her brother Alex are about to have their first grandchild. Isn't that right?
　I think it's about time you were deceded!

'It's not confirmed yet, but in three to four more years ......, when you're coming of age or not, the first Trilateral Conference in forty years will take place.'
　Oh, it was all very serious.
　I'm changing my mind very quickly.

"The Triumvirate Conference?

Yes. The emperor, king and pope would meet in one place. They used to meet every two years before the demon king was overthrown. But after the demon king was gone, the kingdom and the empire didn't get along with each other so much that ...... they stopped doing it forty years ago.
　I didn't know there was such a conference.
　Forty years ago. ...... If that conference were still going on, the war wouldn't have happened?

'Yes, ....... So how did you decide to do it at this time?

No, it's not a done deal yet. Why don't we have the first Trilateral Conference in the Kingdom in forty years?　I started to say.

The kingdom is ...... maybe?
　If the kingdom calls for the event in four years ...... when I come of age, there's only one reason why .

''Yeah . As you can imagine, you'd want to declare war. In front of the Pope.
　Is the goal to be a check on the Pope and to make it impossible for us to back down from each other?
　But this generation of popes must have been greedy too, right?　Don't you think they'll attack each other's exhausted areas in a war?

Yeah, ...... I guess war is inevitable after all.

'I don't know yet. I just think you'd better be prepared for .......

Haha ...... I think I'm ready for this. So, have you decided on a venue for the Tri-Nation Conference or something?
　I'll have to do some reconnaissance for that meeting, and I'll have to do what I can to help.

'Yeah ...... about that ......'

'What?　What?　What's the problem?

I've heard that this is where the Tripartite Conference was held every time it was held.
　And then my father pointed his finger down.

"Here?　Are you going to do it in Mladin territory?
　Oh, come on. You gotta be kidding me!
　Oh, I see. That's why you're apologizing.

Apparently, it was just halfway between the three countries, so he held it in Mladin territory every time.

I see. ......
　You're right, this is the best place to gather.
　Rather, since it's more dangerous for the emperor to go to another country, I should consider it a good thing that it's my domain?

I'm so sorry!

'What?　Why is your father apologizing?

"I want to apologize on behalf of all the nobles of the Empire for putting you in charge of so much work. I'm your father, and I want to apologize for not being able to help you in any way.

......
　Huh?　What do you want me to say in return?
　Oh no, did you have to apologize to him?

I wanted to tell you this, so I've decided to tell Leo about the Triumvirate Conference instead of Orton. Six months and a bit ago ...... you almost died in a kingdom attack, right?　I didn't find out about it until two weeks later, when I was on the frontier: ...... I was really worried about it then.
　Oh, my dad is so depressed because of the bombing.
　Sure, it was tragic. .......
　Many of the noble children who will support the future of the empire have been killed.

At the same time, I realized how stupid I was.
　Is my father stupid?　He seemed more like a kind and firm father?

''Leo has always been so good that he could rise to a senior nobleman by himself, and he's so strong that he wouldn't be proud to slay a dragon. So I'll be okay with Leo. He'll do it. That's what I thought, and so did Orton. But the truth is, he wasn't. I just used the words "strong" and "superior" as a cover to put the hard work on Leo alone.



...... Is that right?　We've been given a good life for that, and I don't feel bad about the emperor, let alone my dad, right?
　Sure, there were a lot of things that felt like a hassle with more work to do .
　But it was fun to devise and mature a tedious job, and I met a lot of people and had a lot of experiences to show for it. ...... I'm grateful for that, but I don't have any hard feelings about anything else at all.

It's hard to believe that you're really ...... my child, you're so solid and kind. But I need to be very sorry about this. From now on, I won't impose on Leo alone. Me and Orton are going to do everything we can to prepare for war with the kingdom.

Oh, thank you. ......
　There's no point in denying it any longer, and I'll be grateful for your support.
　Honestly, it's a good thing there's nothing I can do by myself.

Okay, now that I've said my piece, I'll talk about it. The details will have to wait!　In the meantime, let's just enjoy the auction!
　Wait a minute. Now that I'm finally getting used to the quiet atmosphere, don't turn it up a notch.

Oh, isn't that nice, huh?　Okay, Kara's birthday present next month will be that one!　A hundred thousand for now!
　Well, I like his dad better.
　I thought about that as I watched my dad frolicking like a little boy.