Sheila, the Mermaid Queen.

　She is the wife of His Majesty the Mermaid King Nargus, and in other words, the mother of Prince Arowana and Prati.
　In spite of her humble position, she has a generous mind and body, and has the air of a hero.
　She has an elegant and graceful demeanor, but she's also very strong, and is considered one of the strongest men in humanity.

　She is also one of the biggest concerns about Pfafah's controversial marriage.

　Since ancient times, the issue of marriage and mother-in-law has always been a problem for marriages, and the case of Prince Arowana and Puffa was no exception.

　Anyway, they couldn't marry without Queen Sheila's permission.

　That's really the last hurdle, since most of the other obstacles have been removed.

　Queen Lasbos Sheila, so to speak.
　Thanks to this Lasbos, the marriage has been delayed for almost a year now.

　We have to do something about it.
　So, we have decided to cooperate with the people around us to make a move.

　　　　* * * *

Mom!　Welcome!

　Queen Sheila and King Nargus paid a visit to our farm.
　It was their first visit to our farm.

　Considering the atmosphere between the two of them, it would have been nice if they had come earlier.

As expected of a king and queen. "As expected of a king and queen, they have their own positions and cannot leave their country lightly. Especially on land.
"Most of it!

　Both of you had already taken a potion to change your bodies, and the lower half of your bodies had changed from fish fins to two legs.
　It was a procedure for mermaids to work on the ground, and this is how Prathi and others have adapted to the ground.

I always wondered what kind of fun place Arowana goes to every day. Isn't it just as nice as I imagined?

　Queen Sheila, she said, looking around.
　She seems to have been impressed by the scenery of the countryside that covers the whole land.
　I'm happy to see her happy, since I put all my heart and soul into creating it.

Ssssss, ssss, ssss!

　King Nagas is excited.

"I wish you had called me sooner, since it's such a nice place. .........Well, I knew it would be difficult for me to visit the place until my son-in-law was recognized, but.......
You threw the rebels in jail or kicked them out of office!　No one can complain about that anymore!

　Prathi says something scary.

'More importantly, Mum!　I had a special favor to ask you to come today!
What?　How unusual is it that little Prathi is begging for a favor?

　The two of them are having some kind of mother-daughter conversation.

The first thing that comes to mind is that Prathi has always been a girl who can do everything by herself, so she rarely begs for favors. It's a good thing that you're not a handful, but as a mother, it's a bit lonely...
'Oh, I don't care what happens to me!　But more importantly, what I would like to ask you today is...!

　Duden.
"I want you to acknowledge the marriage of Prince Arowana and Puffa.

'.........that's what I mean!
''...........''

　Wow, Queen Sheila's expression changed in an instant!
　She went from cheerful to cold.
　If I were to compare it to a bodhisattva, it would be from a bodhisattva to an asura!

"If you're wondering what in the world I'm going to say to you when I call you to land...
Isn't it time to go?　That idiot brother Yankee sister-in-law has already decided to get married. Now all we have to do is agree to it, and we can get married tomorrow if Mom agrees. I'm tired of watching those guys writhing about wanting to get married, so why don't you let them move on to the next step?
That's a no-no.

　I knew it, or rather, Queen Sheila was stubborn.

Their marriage is different from those of the people in the city," said Queen Sheila. Arowana is the future king of mermaids. She is the future king of the mermaid kingdom and she will have to take over all the affairs of the mermaid kingdom in the future, following in the footsteps of her great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather. Because she is such a responsible girl, her wife must be prepared to take on the responsibility as well. I can't give you permission to marry her before you can develop that resolve!
What do you really think?
"I can't let another woman take my baby boy.
Yeah.

　The reason for stopping the marriage, it was more emotional than I thought it would be.
　We all had already imagined it, though.

　I know what it's like to be a mother, and that's why we've all been slipping away without interfering so far, but it's time to let it go.

I have the secret to making a mom like that honest!
Oh my God, Prathi, you've been summoned to the land and you're still planning something, aren't you?

　After all, Sheila, being her mother, she knows what Prathi is thinking.
　And is she daring to come on board?

'I want you to eat this!　Puffa!　Come on!
Nice to meet you...!

　This is where the party in question, Puffa, appears.
　He's shaking like a puppy.

　The foodstuff that Pfaffa presents on the plate is....

"Vegetables?

　Cucumbers, eggplants, radishes, carrots, etc. were cut into small pieces, ready to be eaten in one bite.

'You'll know it when you eat it!　How worthy Paffa is of being your brother's wife!　Would you make a good wife!
It's true that a good cook is the first requirement for a good wife. What?　Did you cook this?
''Fish, will you........?''

　Puffa was too frightened and had become a strange character.
　I have a bitter memory of being beaten to a pulp in a duel before, and for Puffa, her mother-in-law is now positioned as a natural enemy.

''Well, I understand what you're saying, but is that why it's okay?　Isn't this just cutting up vegetables?　Does this mean I'm not even cooking...?
Just try it!　Because that will tell you everything!

　The queen is pushed towards her own daughter and sips on a mere vegetable sashimi.

''MOSSUMO!''

　Meanwhile, King Nargus was enjoying himself by wrestling with the orc goblins on the farm.



　And Queen Sheila's eyes widened as soon as she put the vegetable in her mouth.

''This is more than just cutting up vegetables!　''It has a totally different texture and taste!　At least it's a whole lot better than just raw vegetables!
You know what I'm talking about!　These vegetables are marinated by Pfafa with all his heart and soul!

　Yes.
　The vegetables that Queen Sheila ate were not just vegetable sashimi.
　It was a dish made with more skill and process than that.

　That's right........pickles!

'Puffa is in charge of the farm's fermentation department!　Of all those, nukazuke is the fermented food she does best!　Because my brother is my favorite!

　Nukazuke is a method of soaking rice in the bran that separates from the main body of the rice when it is being polished.

　The bran is stirred at regular intervals because the bran bed will rot if left unattended.
　In some cases, it must be done every day.

　Because of the difficulty of maintaining it, having a good bed of bran can be the status of a good wife.

Puffa's pickles are top-notch!　I'm using my magical role knowledge as a witch to make the best bran bed I can, and then stirring it every day without fail to keep it fresh!　Even when I was accompanying my brother on his martial arts training, I had to go back and stir it up with transition magic once every day!

　Her tenacity to keep the habit alive.
　It was all so that her future husband, Prince Arowana, could enjoy the delicious bran pickles.

The taste of this nukazuke is what makes it so delicious!　It just proves that Puffa can be a good wife!

　What the hell?

　I know, I've seen this before.
　I used to read those cartoons in a previous world. You know, the kind where you take a troubled antagonist and turn him into a saint with a delicious meal.

　No matter how twisted his character may be, once he cooks for them and the protagonist blurts out his sermons, his character is changed like a lie.
　He turns into a true human being like an angel, and they reconcile as if they never had a fight in the first place!

　Who would've thought Plati would use such a technique?
　You can't believe her wits!


"Oh!

　And Queen Sheila's on board!
　Can we keep up the momentum?

But it's not working.
"ohhhhh?

　Cooking manga isn't as easy as it sounds after all!
　Is it possible to change someone's mind with a single dish?

Surely, Pahwa who can make such delicious pickles would make a good wife. Arowana must be a lucky person to be able to marry her.
Well, that's...?
But we mustn't forget. You mustn't forget that Arowana is going to be a mermaid. His wife will not be just another wife. She will have a more important role to play as the mermaid queen.

　There is a difference in the weight of responsibility between a mere married woman and a queen.
　I can't complain when this is pointed out to me.

Then I will give you one last try, Your Majesty. Get past this, and I fully approve of your marriage. No two words for a woman.

　Oh!
　If we can clear that up, can Prince Arowana and Puffa get married this time?

　The final stage.
　And what is the final stage of the ordeal...?

Well, yeah. You have now proven that you are qualified to be a good wife by marinating in bran. Then you'll have to demonstrate your qualifications to be a queen by marinating in bran.

　Queen Sheila declared in a loud voice.

'Go and make the Queen's bogeys!　And when that is recognized, let's also recognize that you are fit to be the next queen!