--Janet asked me if I'd like to be her son-in-law.

You're so clever, Makoto. Yo, you natural gigolo!
　Master Noah what do we do now?
(Hmm? (Do what you want.)
　
　It's my own problem.

If you join the Ballantine family, a vast territory will be yours. However, I'll be there to manage it, so there's no need to bother. You can continue to be an adventurer as a hobby, or you can live and play every day. Oh, you can have as many side rooms as you want besides me. Lucy-san and Aya-san will of course be with you.
　Janet slurred the words as if she was preparing them.
　Its content is fascinating.
　In short, she said to play and live.
　


"Do you want to enter the Muko end of Janet-san's son-in-law?
　Yes, sir.
　No.


　You bastard!
　It's been a long time since you've appeared, but you gave me a weird choice.
　Normally, you should have come out before going to Esther's place!
　Huh..., I took a small deep breath.

'I'm engaged to Princess Sophia.
　I said no to Janet, along with my reasons.
　But Janet-san remained smiling.

''It's no problem, I'll talk to Princess Sophia about it.
...................What?
　The answer that came back was not what I expected.
　What did he just say?　This girl.

So it's okay if Princess Sophia is satisfied?
No, wait.
　Terrible thing is, you're interpreting it like I said OK?

The food is here. I know the head chef here, so I asked him to prepare a special menu.
　And he's changing the subject!

Janet, you see....
'Dear Janet, brave lady of Roses. I would like to explain the dish. Today's ingredients are.........

　Something about the chef's commentary has started!
　In the end, lunch ended in a haphazard manner.

　As the Ballantine family's daughter is a favorite restaurant, the food was very good.


　◇


　I came back to the inn.
　Janet followed me, as she should have.
　And snuggled up to her.
　As expected, I asked her to stay away from the inn.

'I'm back...'
　I open the door with trepidation.

'Mako!　You're finally home!
"Takatsuki-kun!　Oh my God!
　As soon as I walked into the lobby of the inn, Lucy and Sa-san came running.
　What's going on?

Princess Noel and the brave men of light are here!
Fu-chan's in trouble!
The princess?
　What's going on again?　I hurriedly followed them.


''Moon Priestess Friae you're being too goofy with Ryousuke-san.
'Oh, you know Ryouske came to see me, right?　Do you have a problem with that?
'He's my fiancé. Just get away from him.
Nobody likes a girl who's a fetter, do they?
What are you...

　In a room at the inn, a shura scene was unfolding.
　Princess Noel folded her arms and glared at Furiae.
　Frierrier-san smiled with her hand on Sakurai-kun's shoulder.

'........Hey, you two have calmed down.......
Ryousuke, shut up.
Mr. Ryousuke, please be quiet for a minute.
....
　Sakurai-kun and Princess Sofia are wavering.

(.........what are you doing?)
　Especially Princess Sophia.

　I sighed and approached the four of them.
　Lucy and Sa-san told me that Princess Noel, who came with Princess Sophia, and Mr. Sakurai, who came to check on Furiae, had bumped into each other.
　I heard that Princess Noel and Furiae were battling with each other.

'Hey, Sakurai-kun!'
　I called out to my childhood friend with a wave of my hand.
　It was so cool when he was the first one to go against me against Alec the Sun's heroic Alec earlier.
　Well, I've always been indecisive when dealing with women.

''What?!''
　At my voice, Frierrier-san reacted before Sakurai-kun did.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work for you.
　She took a little distance from Sakurai-kun.

'Hime, you can't flirt with Sakurai-kun in moderation.
No, no!
　He turned his voice over and denied it.

　It's not different.
　If possible, would you please stop in front of Princess Noel?
　I'm getting a lot of help from them.
　After that, Princess Noel and Sakurai-kun also turned around to look at me.

You have a hard time today, Makoto-san.
'Thank you for your time earlier, Princess Noel.
　I thanked her for defending me, an apostle of the evil gods.
　At that moment, Princess Noel turned to look next to me.

'Janet, you were with Mako-san.
'Yes ... well ... I don't think it's any of your business, Sister Noel....
　Princess Noel and Miss Janet are a little awkward.
".........
　There was a slight awkwardness in the air between Princess Noel and Miss Janet.

'Miss Makoto,'
　As if to change the air, Princess Noel spoke to me.

''As for the Goddess you believe in, the Sun Goddess (Altena) has allowed you to do so. It's natural considering your achievements in the Land of Trees (Spring Rogue) and the Land of Fire (Great Keith).
　I would say the same thing as Mr. Maximilian.
　It's a theory that her personality has changed from before.

　........But hey, maybe that miko.......
　I'll talk to Noah-sama later.

'Takatsuki-kun, where have you been?　There are rumors that the Pope is trying to send a temple knight against Takatsuki-kun, an apostle of the evil gods. It's best not to go out too much.
　Sakurai-kun said with a worried look.
　What is it?

I didn't know that........I'll change my look when I go out. Thanks, Sakurai-kun.
No, I told him we shouldn't go out...
　At my words, Sakurai-kun made a troubled face.　

''My knight, how did your talk with the Goddess of Destiny's priestess (Esther) go?''
　Friae interrupted the conversation.
''What?!''
　Princess Noel and Sakurai-kun's eyes widened in surprise.

''Makoto-san!　You went to see Esther?
What the hell were you thinking?　Takatsuki-kun!
It's a lot of fun.
　I shared my conversation with Esther, the Goddess of Destiny's priestess.
　On the way, Janet-san supplemented me, so there should be no discrepancies in content.
　However, Janet-san, you're too attached.

''.........Hmm, the Goddess of Destiny's priestess can't see my future, can she? So, how could you stab a brave man in the back?
　Mr. Furiae said uncomfortably.

'But good for you. Fu-chan wouldn't do that, you know.'
I'm worried about you, Sakurai-kun, if I were you.
　I wasn't sure if I should tell you or not, but I also told you about the miko Esther's 'future where the hero of light will die'.

　..........as I thought......Sakurai-kun knows about it.

　It seems to be the reason why the country of the sun is in a hurry to have a child of Mr. Sakurai's.

"Takatsuki-kun, you don't have to look like that to know that the future prediction of fate magic is not always 100% accurate. Rather, it's meant to avoid a bad future.
Yeah but you have to be careful.
　I said to my strong but good-natured childhood friend.

''Don't worry, Ryousuke-san, Makoto-san. I will change the 'future where the brave men of light die' with all the power of the Land of the Sun!
　Princess Noel assured her emphatically.
　'You're loved.

''If you ask me, as a fate wizard, I'd rather not change that future.
　That's where Huriae put a sideways glance at him.

'Huli?　What are you talking about?!
'Princess?　What do you mean?
　Mr. Freyae's words were condemned by me and Lucy, as expected.

''Changing your future vision isn't as easy as it sounds. If there's a high probability of 'the future where the brave men of light are stabbed', then you should think about how to save them after they're stabbed. The 'Light Priestess' there can use resurrection magic, so if you revive her after being stabbed, you don't have to change the future, right?
That's one way to think about it.
　Well I nodded in admiration.

''I agree. The Great Sage was also concerned that if you try to change the future poorly, it could make it worse or spread to other things.
　Sakurai-kun also seems to agree with Furiae's opinion.

　Great Sage's words are very persuasive.
　I wonder if Freiae's plan is better?

No, you can't!　To leave the future of Ryousuke-san's stabbing intact...!
I don't get it, woman. It could lead to a rather bad future.
　Princess Noel is for changing the future itself.
　Freyae is for following the future as it happens.

　I can understand both sides of the argument, but....
　Ah, Princess Noel and Furie-san started arguing with each other again.
　Apparently, the two of them aren't a good match for each other.

(Sakurai-kun, I'll take care of the rest.)

　I was thinking about that at a leisurely pace.
　It's tough being a colored man.
　Oh dear.....　
　Now that we've given everyone the information, let's get back to our usual training.


(Mako, stop pretending that you forgot the most important thing.)　
　Huh, Master Noah.
　What are you talking about?

By the way, my brave men, Makoto and Janet.
　Princess Sophia, who had been quiet until now, came quickly over.

'Oh, Sophia ... what?'
　He tugged on my arms with a gesture.

'How long will you keep your arms crossed?'
Oh.
　Sheesh.
　The next thing I knew, Janet had her arms around me again.
　Princess Sophia pulled me closer and twined her arms around me.

'Is there a problem?'
　Janet is smiling coolly at me.
　And she still hasn't let go of my arm.

'There is. Now get away from me.
'Oh, I'm Janet Ballantyne, right?　Even a princess of the House of Roses doesn't deserve to be ordered around, does she?
　Janet, you use the prestige of the Ballantine family relentlessly........

'Brave Mako is a member of the Roses family.
'I told Mako to let me join the Ballantine family today. I got a very colorful response.
""Ehhh."
　Not only Princess Sophia, but Lucy and Sa-san's voices overlapped and glared at us.
　If we don't do this, we're in danger!

Hey!　Miss Janet, no!
　Now correct me!

...Takatsuki Makoto refused me because she had a fiancé.
　Janet reluctantly corrected me.
　The three of us were relieved to hear that line.

''So I'll take the time to drop Mako. So, I'll make sure to turn him around.
　Smiling, Janet smiles at me.
　'What?

''How could Mako, the brave man of Roses, flirt with you? I wouldn't allow it in the first place.
　Princess Sophia, with a cold look in her eyes, said

'I'm not so sure about that.'
　But Mr. Janet remained gruff.
　She said she would talk to Princess Sophia.
　You don't mean to force her to use the power of the Five Holy Nobles or something.......

Princess Sophia. Lately, there has been an increase in the number of demons that have turned rabid within Roses. Until now, we could get support from the Fire Nation and the Sun Nation. Our Northern Heavenly Knights used to go over there to help defeat the demons as well. But recently, due to the anti-demon king's military buildup, we can't rely on the armies of other countries. They have no choice but to recruit adventurers, but adventurers are expensive, and they can't pay afterwards, so they have to pay cash for everything. It's putting a strain on Roses' finances, isn't it?
　Janet told me a fact that I didn't know.

'Sophia is that true?'
It's true.
Princess Sophia said regretfully.
　

''If it's about money, Fujiyan........''
''As a matter of fact I already owe Lord Fujiwara quite a bit of money.
　Seriously?
　It had already been taken care of.
　Still, if it wasn't enough...

''If I am married to Takatsuki Makoto, it will be easier to move the Northern Heavenly Knights. Since Roses and Ballantine territory are far apart, it would be better to move part of the Northern Heavenly Knights to Roses. That will cost us more in maintenance costs, but considering the recent appearance of demons, we shouldn't have to let them play around.
　Janet-san's argument sounds reasonable.........
　I'm an amateur in politics, so I don't understand, but seeing that Princess Sophia is thinking about it, it's probably a straightforward proposal.

''Of course, I'm not going to say that I'll get an answer right away. But if you're thinking about your own people........I can understand.
Yeah.
　Janet-san and Princess Sophia, conversing with a serious face, had the face of a politician who cares about the people of the country.

　........It doesn't look like it's my place to be.

''NeNe, Mako.
　Lucy tugged on my sleeve.
　I turned around and saw Lucy and Sa-san giving me a cold look.
'Hey, what is it?'
Takatsuki-kun, you look like you're somebody else's problem, but isn't that the kind of thing that happens when you decide to talk about it, and Takatsuki-kun goes to Jane-chan?
　Mr. Sa, that's not a very good abbreviation, is it?

'No, I'm still a brave man of Roses, and I guess I'll still be McAllen.　Also, Janet says that her husband's condition is that he's the man who beat Jera.
Isn't that almost a no-brainer for...?
　Lucy says the same thing I do.

'What, good! So, Janet-chan doesn't really like Takatsuki-kun!
　At Sa-san's words, Janet's eyebrows twitched.
　Huh?　We've had this conversation before....

'Hold on, Aya. I have one thing to say to you.
　Janet turned and looked at me.

'I........have a fondness for Takatsuki Makoto.......'
" "!!!
　Janet said, blushing.
　Princess Sophia, Lucy, and Sa-san all look flabbergasted.

''Mako I'll prepare a room for you at Ballantyne Castle.
　Janet smiles bewitchingly, putting her hand on my cheek.
　It's totally different than when I was a Pegasus Knight (Knight)!
　I heard someone grit their teeth.

''Well we're not going to talk about that earlier.
What?
''We don't need the help of the Northern Heavenly Knights!　Now get that hand off of me!
'Princess Sophia it's a poor idea to misjudge because of jealousy.
It's not an error of judgment, sir.
It's a bit silly, isn't it?
　The clouds are starting to cloud over.

''...Just step away from me, you slow-moving knight.
　At Princess Sophia's words, Janet's complexion changed.
　Hey!　Sophia-san!

''........You're a hard-headed priestess. If you're like that, the brave men of another world will run away from you.''
　Princess Sophia's eyes grow increasingly sharp at Janet's line.

'Janet, shut up.'
'Try shutting him up.　Sophia.
　Princess Sophia and Janet-san stare at each other from a nose-to-nose distance.

　Ah, that.........
　How did this happen?

Hi, Sophie. Let's get you settled in.
　Saasan was dragging Princess Sophia along with him.

(Takatsuki's foolishness.)
　I heard such a whisper.　

'Come on, come on, Hooli. Come on, let's go.
　On the other side, Lucy is pulling Mr. Friae along with her.
　Bey, Lucy stuck out her tongue.

　I glanced at Sakurai-kun and our eyes met.
　That pathetic face is probably a mirror with the same expression on mine.

(How pathetic!)
　The Goddess was right.　　



　◇



　For a while after that, similar days followed.
　In the end, Janet-san seems to be working on an arrangement to rent out the Northern Heavenly Knights to Roses.
　I talked to my brother Gerald, the leader of the group, and he said, "Take them as long as you want! He said.
　Jera, you're a real man!

　The rest.
　General Talisker came to me and said, "The Fire Nation will support you, Lord Mako," and so on.
　Maximilian-san told me that if you have any problems, I'll always be there to help you.　

　Sakurai-kun also comes to show up.
　Fujiyan and I ate and talked about old times.

　There was just a slight problem.
'Oh, you're back. You're late.
Stone-headed priestess. Hello.
　It's Princess Sophia and Janet-san's cursory glance at each other.
　In case you're wondering, they're not fighting, they're discussing the operation of the Northern Heavenly Order.
　I'm doing it, but the conversation is scary.
　I'm listening next to him, cringing.
　.......................They're having a conversation between me and them.


　Lucy and Sa-san are blurting it out every day.

'We haven't been spending much time together lately, have we?　Mako.
Takatsuki-kun, we miss you.
'I'll stay with you for the training time!　We'll find the time!
　I'm dealing with this by cutting back on my sleep.
　I didn't realize that the sleep reduction techniques I developed in the old days in all-night games would be useful here.

(Moderation or you'll destroy your body.)
　Ha, yes.
　Yes, Mr. Noah.
　I'm sorry for my concern.

　........it's just that, after all.

　Everyone is taking care of the Pope, the First Prince, and the priestess Esther so that they don't get messed with by the Pope, the First Prince, and the priestess Esther.
　That's why all kinds of people are coming together.
　I'm thankful.

　Those days lasted for a few days.

　One morning, one of the knights of the Water Country (Roses) came running, out of breath.
　With some news.


'The armies of the two demon kings, the King of Beasts (Zagan) and the King of Sea Demons (Forneus), have begun their march to the western continent!


　The war has begun.