Bartolo's child was born.
　The news came to all the great families in the Kingdom of Lossies.



　'Oh!　Lord Alms-Ass. You're here!　And Lord Tetra.
　'Yes, congratulations on your day. This is a celebratory drink.

　I point to the three barrels of booze on the wagon.
　Ron and Rosward, who have come along as my bodyguards, instruct their servants to carry it out.

　'Oh!　Alcohol. Great, I like it.
　'Don't drink too much. It's a pretty strong drink.

　In the meantime, I'd like to give you some advice.
　You will get hurt if you drink it the same way you usually drink wine.

　You!　Why don't you cut back on the drinking, at least on days like this?
　A woman approached Bartolo. She was holding a small baby in her hand.
　She was probably Bartolo's wife.
　'What are you talking about? That's why you drink on days like this, right?

　They begin to struggle.
　By the way, your wife is young. I mean, she's a girl.

　She's younger than Tetra, if she's not, she's younger than Tetra.
　Bartolo is in his early 30s, right? You pedophile!

　Are you Alms-sama?　My husband is always there for me.
　No, no, no. I'm the same. Lord Bartolo has always been a great help to me...

　In my cooler moments, he hasn't helped me that much, but the less said the better.

　The boy?
　Tetra looks at the baby in the woman's arms and asks.

　'Yes. 'Yes, I do. Would you like to hold it?　It's a girl.
　Tetra gave a small nod at the question.

　Tetra held the baby as if she were handling an expensive broken object.
　She held it for a while, and when she was satisfied, Tetra easily handed the baby back to the woman.

　'I'll see you later then. Have as much to drink and eat as you like.
　Bartolo said and headed to another of the great families.




　'Hey Almus. Do you still want a boy first?
　It doesn't matter. It doesn't mean a woman can't be the heir to the throne.

　On the Adelunian peninsula, it's a male inheritance, but it's just a traditional story.
　There is a profession in this world that only women can become, called sorceress, so the status of women is not so low.

　It's just that it's difficult.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find a lot of problems with female inheritance when it comes to the country of King Rosais and other big inheritance issues.

　''But a boy won't have all sorts of problems.......is that better?
　'Well, I don't want any trouble. Yeah, first a boy, then a girl, I guess.

　I don't want to be biased one way or the other. All male or all female.
　Come to think of it, gender is a factor for men, right?

　Well, it's okay now.
　There's no sign of pregnancy.

　Let's start with the feast.
　Do you understand what we're doing today?
　I know. We'll get you as close as we can. I know, right?　I've memorized the names of all the people who seemed to impress me at my last wedding. It's okay.

　By the way, they were all anti-Dibel pro-Rossians.
　It looks like I'm going to have to contend with the Dibel family by all means.

　Well, quarreling is a pain in the ass...

　'Let's try not to antagonise Rigal Dibel as much as possible. We're neighbors.
　That's better. There's no reason for us to fight.

　Well, for now, let's see.

　Do you want to eat and drink?





　The party has begun.
　If I were to raise one impression I had, it would be....

　There's no manners, is there?

　High status people called a big family guzzle liquor, wipe their hands with their clothes, make a lot of noise, and talk with an object in their mouth.
　Well, we don't have tableware like spoons and forks, and this is a world where hand-holding is the basic way of life, so it's not surprising.

　'But I don't think they wipe their hands with their clothes.
　We'll wipe them down with a handkerchief.

　I brought a lot of handkerchiefs with me.
　But it's still inconvenient without dishes. Can't we spread the word somehow?

　'I think our leader cares too much,'
　Yeah. Yeah.
　Ron and Roseward, well that's fine if you don't mind.
　And the rest of the guys are the same way.

　'Lord Alms!　Would you mind telling me the story of how you avenged King Ferrum's defeat?
　Yeah, that's fine.

　This was the fifth time in fact.
　It's not that I don't want to talk about it, but I'm tired of talking about the same thing over and over again.

　
　Or rather, is this kind of thing helping to deepen our friendship?

　And there's another problem.

　"Lord Armes. As a matter of fact, my daughter would like to hear your story. Will you not allow her to hear your story?
　Lady Alms!

　Apparently, I'm in my prime of popularity.

　There are three possible reasons for this.
　First is that Tetra is the only one with a wife.
　Secondly, Tetra hasn't given birth to a boy yet, and thirdly, I don't have any relatives in a wealthy family.
　And third, I don't have any relatives in a big family.

　So if you can be related to me now, it would be a great return.
　Especially the Australians who have failed to get into the Dibel family and are desperate to get in.

　It's fine as long as you let them talk to me....
　Marriage.
　There's no way I just married Tetra and immediately took a second wife, and it's irrevocable.
　After all, the wealthy families who have taken up with me are the ones who can't afford it, so they don't have much power.

　If a young woman comes close to me, Tetra will glare at her and disperse her, which is fine.

　Be a little more affable.
　No problem. We can just get rid of such a small and powerful family. I am not opposed to Almus taking a second wife. It's just that if he was going to do it, he would have to do it with a powerful house.

　I like the second one too.
　He's still a bland guy.

　Personally, I'd be happy if he was a little more jealous.

　As I think about it, things get a little hectic around me.
　''Hm?　What?
　Ahhhhh Lord Rigal Dibel is here.

　The Australians who have been rubbing up against me blatantly lower the tension.
　Do you hate it that much?

　Rigal Dibel came through the crowd.
　He was a year taller than I was, and more muscular.

　He is about thirty-some years old.

　He was accompanied by a long line of people behind him. I'm sure they're all powerful families under Rigal Dibel's influence.

　It's been a long time since we've seen you, Lord Almus Asu. I haven't seen you since your wedding. Lord Tetra is as beautiful as ever.
　'Yes. I'm glad to see that Lord Rigal is looking well too.

　All eyes are on me and Rigal Dibel.

　'Let's support each other and this country.
　Yes, I'm counting on you to be there in case of an emergency.
　Rigal Dibel holds out his hand to me.
　I take his hand and tighten my grip.

　When the handshake was over, he was gone in a flash.
　I'm glad he didn't say anything about the crystal decorations in that case...

　'I don't like it. With his cronies in tow like that....
　"Ha-ha.
　I let it slide.

　"Hey, leader. Did you notice that they were trying to kill us?
　Of course. I knew that. I know what it was like for you guys to jump up against them and scare the shit out of them.
　Because I've heard they're hostile to you...

　But that doesn't mean you shouldn't compete.
　I don't want to get in trouble. I'd like to stay in an amicable relationship, if possible.



　As I'm lecturing Ron and Roseward, the room is buzzing again.
　That was.....

　"Royal House of Rosyth...
　King Rosais' relatives, led by Julia, are coming.

　Bartolo isn't a large and powerful family, but........well, it's only natural for him to come since he's made so many achievements.

　First, Julia calls out to Bartolo.
　Even Bartolo, who has become brandy-covered, straightens up as soon as Yulia arrives and responds.
　That guy, he's a kid who can do it if he tries.

　When the conversation with Bartolo was over, Julia walked straight toward me.

　"Good evening. Lord Armes As.
　Yes, hello. Princess Julia.

　I answer, and Julia reaches out her hand to me.
　I take her hand and shake it.

　''I look forward to working with you in the future.''
　Julia leaves me and walks over to Rigal Dibel.

　'Hm,'
　A letter was left in my hand.



　'Have you been staring at me for some time now, Mr. Rigal?　I knew they found out about the crystal you disassembled...
　'No. He's angry because Yulia was the first to greet you.

　Tetra shakes her head and denies it.
　I see.

　It is natural to greet Bartolo, the host, first, but who do you greet second?
　That's the important thing?

　'Hello. Is it correct that you are Lord Almus?''
　I was approached by a large man.
　Well ... this guy ...

　'Raimondo Rosais. Julia's uncle.
　Tetra told me by ear.

　Oh, yeah, Mr. Raimondo. I just remembered.
　You were there for the wedding.

　Yes, I was. Long time no see.
　We shake hands for now.
　Mr. Raimondo is smiling.

　Okay, it looks like he doesn't know my name. I'm relieved.

　"Can we talk for a minute over there?
　Yeah, that's fine.

　We both stepped away from the banquet hall.



　'This drink. It's very strong. My normal sake isn't enough for me.......could you sell it to me if you can?
　Yes. That's fine. Can we pay in wheat or salt or Cilician currency, please?
　Yes, I know. Yes, I know. Yes, I know. There's a pretty big salt mine in our territory. The salt from here is of a very high quality...

　We start making small talk.
　Specifically, our territory's specialties and how we're dealing with the trial.

　

　As I was thinking this, Mr. Raimondo suddenly cut me off.

　'Lord Almus. You know that King Rosais has only a few days left to live, don't you?
　'Yes. I know you're ill, but...

　I honestly don't think that raccoon is going to go down....

　Three years to go. It's possible that he'll collapse before the end of the year.
　Mr. Raimondo says that and drinks his drink.

　What's the point of telling me that........

　What do you think the next king should be?
　'I'm thinking ... why don't you just stand up as a normal king?　I don't see the need for Princess Yulia to go out of her way to have a son-in-law.

　Wouldn't it be more natural for the king's brother to be the next king rather than setting up a son-in-law as king?

　We've discussed this a lot. But that could lead to a succession battle among the royal families. I am not the only one of King Rosais' three brothers. And all of them have children, including me. If I stand as king, my other brothers will probably complain about it. You don't want your family to hate and suspect each other, do you?　The most roundabout way is for Princess Julia to have a son-in-law and for us to stand up. In that case, they all say they have no complaints.

　It's true that when the precedent is set for a brother to take over, the other brothers will start taking aim.
　Things are hard enough for the royal family.

　So, who do you think should be my son-in-law?
　''Wouldn't that normally be Lord Rigal Dibel?　Isn't it the most powerful and powerful family at the moment?

　When I replied, Mr. Raimondo cowered his shoulders.

　''It's true that that Rigal Dibel is better in terms of power. But.........I hear that man's management of the territory is terrible. It seems that the people often flee to other fiefdoms, causing problems. Besides, it seems that he was painfully beaten by King Ferrum many times in battle. Most of all...

　Mr. Raimondo looks straight at me.

　'That man was married to three women, but now he only has one wife. They say he died in an accident I doubt it's true. And I hear he's been roughing up some of the better looking women in the territory. How can I trust my lovely niece to a man like that?

　When I don't respond, Raimondo takes another drink.
　Then he empties his glass and looks at me again.

　The trouble is," he says, "Rigal Dibel's cronies, vassals and relatives. We have quite a good bloodline. They may despise us royalty after they become kings.

　Mr. Raimondo tapped me on the shoulder and said as he left.

　''Is there any ideal son-in-law who has enough territory to compete with Rigal Dibel, who is capable of trusting the country to him, who is kind enough to trust Princess Julia, who has few relatives to whom we, the royals, are not despised?　Let me know if you find them.

　Mr. Raimondo left alone.