599 – Be Happy, My Junior – 1

Year-end service for the next saint. The New Year’s wedding ceremony followed a few days later.

Due to a series of large-scale events, high-ranking nobles even lost topics to talk about. There’s a lot to talk about just once in a while. If we meet for several days, there won’t be any more topics to talk about.

“Have you eaten?”

“Oh, yes, of course.”

“Excuse me, but what…”

“We ate the same thing.”

Thanks to this, conversations like this took place throughout the banquet hall. Normally, I would have had a conversation with him because he was a precious face to meet, but since he had already made any important transactions or promises during the year-end service a long time ago, all I could do was say hello and talk about his current situation his. Even those greetings were left out on the first day of the New Year’s wedding.

It’s amazing. Usually, the New Year’s ceremony is an event where the emperor announces the government plan for the year and further inspires the loyalty of the nobles. It is a place where nobles can fight with each other and readjust their factions.

However, this year’s New Year’s celebration was the most tranquil and peaceful New Year’s celebration since the founding of the empire.

‘The next saint is amazing.’

All of this is thanks to the small ball launched by the next saint. Perhaps because he is the son of God, he brought peace to the empire.

“Son-in-law. What are you thinking?”

As I sipped champagne and looked around the banquet hall, my fifth father-in-law (Jin), the Marquis Iones, spoke to me.

“I was wondering if there has been such a peaceful New Year’s celebration in recent times.”

“Haha, my son-in-law was thinking about that too. It’s been a whirlwind of times these past few years.”

My father-in-law burst into laughter at my words and patted my shoulder.

“Last year, a new member of the Lisizariune Order was appointed at the official launch of the Ministry of Inspection?”

“I still feel dizzy just thinking about that time.”

This time, my father-in-law burst out laughing. I guess he thinks I’m joking.

Of course, I did not protest with a stern and serious face to my father-in-law, who seemed to be in a good mood. From the perspective of a father who is soon marrying off his beloved daughter, how good will the future son-in-law look? I have no intention of breaking that image with my own hands.

‘It must feel like a lifetime of resentment has been released.’

She smiled as she looked at her father-in-law, whose face was red as he had already emptied several bottles of alcohol.

Unlike my third and fourth father-in-laws, who called me son-in-law only after they were officially married, my fifth father-in-law started calling me son-in-law some time ago. As if he thought I would go somewhere if he didn’t call me son-in-law.

After the relegation of the Aesilon family, he has been competing to be the first marquess, and thanks to his rich territory, he has nothing to regret. That kind of person goes around smiling brightly just because her daughter is getting married, and she is already taking care of me as her son-in-law her her, even though I am still officially just a stranger .

‘If it were me, I would have done the same.’

Other people may think it’s an unusual situation, but having worked with Eri for many years, I can fully understand how my father-in-law feels.

Due to Eri’s personality her her, if she misses the opportunity now, there will be no next time. Since her father-in-law knows this, she must be even more desperate. If her marriage fails this time, her father-in-law will lose his mind and cry and repeat her laughter.

Fortunately, Eri, who was just around the corner from turning 30, had a partner in her 20s. It wasn’t a case of kidnapping, it was someone who was like-minded. From the marquis’s perspective, wouldn’t he want to hold on to his family’s fate his even if it means risking it?

“Now that I think about it, my father-in-law.”

“Why, son-in-law? Is there anything you need?”

I smiled awkwardly, as if he would throw me a land document if I just spoke to him. I heard that there are already two baronies in Eri’s name, so it would be a shame to receive more than this.

“I haven’t seen Eri since a while ago. Do you know where she went?”

That’s why she quickly brought up her business. Clearly, Eri, who was next to me just an hour ago, has disappeared before I know it.

“As expected, only my son-in-law thinks about my daughter.”

In response to my question, my father-in-law nodded with a happy expression.

Even though her eyes were covered with bean pods, her reaction was to close them tightly, so she was unable to open her mouth in time. I never thought I would live to see the bean pods of my future father-in-law, not my future wife.

“Eri has been away for a while after receiving a call from Her Majesty the Empress. She will be back before dinner.”

And she nodded her head obediently in response.

From the empress’s perspective, the marriage of her junior, who had taken the spinster route, was imminent. It’s not unusual for two people to have some alone time before the wedding.

‘Time just for the two of us.’

It’s time to get used to it, but I still feel cognitive dissonance that Eri and the Empress are close.

Dukes and marquises, silver and white hair. If you just look at the background or appearance, it is not strange to be close, but the inside is…

‘Is there anything strange about being close to Fine?’

In fact, what is more surprising than being close to the Empress is that Eri and Fine are friends. Those two really have nothing in common other than being human.

So now, let’s completely put this thought out of our heads. To the person who will officially become my wife in a while, I asked, ‘With your personality, how can you become close to the Empress?’ It is not polite to say that. If you have formed a friendship with an unexpected person, you should highly evaluate Eri’s friendliness and sociability, and it should never be viewed as strange.

Moreover, when it comes to unusual things, I would be more unique as heir to the Empire and yet be friends with commoners.

***

Senior Aria was looking for her, so she trudged to the empress’ palace.

Then, she was led to a private room where neither the princess, who was raised with care by her predecessor, nor the maids and knights who were supposed to guard the empress’s palace were visible.

“Are you here?”

In a solitary room with only seniors.

“Can I go out? It’s a bit empty since it’s just the two of us.”

Since she had no ears to hear, she opened her mouth comfortably. Fortunately, even seniors are allowed to speak informally and call themselves senior in private situations.

“Or just call me the Crown Princess. I think the three of us will liven things up.”

“No. I’m at an age where I should grow up seeing only good things.”

I felt strange about the firm rejection. Then am I bad?

Feel dissapointed. Anyway, I am the closest junior to my senior. Even if she’s not a real little sister, she’s an honorary little sister. Then, isn’t the Crown Princess also an honorary niece from my perspective? No, in the first place, the Minister is the Crown Princess’ godfather, so if you look at it a little broadly, I am also a godmother.

“Don’t think strange things and just sit back in your seat.”

“Neng.”

Of course, I didn’t voice my complaints out loud. Honorary nephew and godmother. If you say things like that, my senior will hit me in the face and say he’s never had a godmother like you.

“What kind of alcohol would you like to drink?”

“Oh, I like red wine.”

“Here’s champagne.”

“Why did you ask?”

I pouted my lips as I accepted the bottle of champagne handed to me by my senior. If she was going to throw anything she could get her hands on anyway, why did she ask?

“There is no opener─”

In the meantime, while trying to protest against the cruelty of her senior who did not give her a glass or an opener, she tilted her head when she saw him sitting down empty-handed.

What? Why don’t you bring your own drink?

“Senior, have you stopped drinking?”

She asked with a trembling voice because it was an incredible sight.

The Duchy of Havelem, where the Duke of Nuren is located, is a territory located in the north of the empire. Although it is not at the level of the recently incorporated northern region, it is quite cold in the winter. Thanks to this, my senior drank alcohol in the winter to raise his body temperature, and that habit has continued to this day. I drink simple accommodations regularly during meals.

That senior person only threw drinks at me and didn’t take any of his own. From what I remember, the only time your senior stopped drinking was when he became pregnant with the Crown Princess…?

“…No way.”

When she looked at her senior blankly, he smiled and patted her stomach.

“I have a second child. My junior hasn’t even gotten married yet, which is a shame.”

She couldn’t answer anything and just looked at her senior’s stomach.

Weird. The age difference between me and my senior isn’t that big. But why does my senior already have two children and I am single?

‘I’m glad I got married soon.’

I’m serious. If my marriage was a long time away or I hadn’t even confessed to the minister yet, I would have felt heartbroken. Knowing that, my senior would call me and brag about her pregnancy.

“If you work hard, my second child and your child will be the same age.”

“Effort?”

It was something I couldn’t relate to, so she raised the corners of her mouth.

If you’re an ordinary couple, you should make an effort to have a child. But our minister and groom-to-be are different.

“I’ll get married and have a child within 10 days?”

Our husband-to-be is a rare monster who has already made four wives pregnant. Whether I try or not, my pregnancy is a constant that will come.

Unfortunately, our last date ended in failure at the theater, but it was an unplanned and short time. It’s okay for newlyweds because they have plenty of time. Yes.

“I can’t deny it.”

There was no way the senior could not have known the majesty, so she nodded her head obediently.

“I’m glad that the Minister has so many children. That means there are that many children who will become Charlotte’s friends.”

“Is that something you agreed to with my children?”

I protested against the atrocity of turning my unborn children into my daughter’s friends. You don’t have to make friends one-sidedly; you have to have mutual feelings for her.

“If you were my daughter, your children would immediately make her their younger sister, right?”

“I can’t deny it…”

She nodded bitterly at her senior’s words.

I’m sorry, my future children. This mother is an ugly mother who gave in to the power of the empress.

After that, I sipped wine alone and talked about various things with my senior. Sometimes we communicate through communication channels, but it’s different to talk face to face.

“Eri.”

“Neng?”

“Thank you.”

At those words, she quietly put her wine bottle down on the table and looked at her senior.

What. Am I drunk already? I think I just heard something strange.

“Aren’t you tired of your eyes?”

I felt reassured by her subsequent remarks and picked up the wine bottle again.

You heard correctly. It wasn’t that my ears tasted bad.

‘Then did you really say thank you?’

I got goosebumps later. My senior is saying thank you to me?

‘Why?’

Why…?