Today’s topic of discussion was what kind of resort we were going to build. If we only decided that among ourselves, we wouldn’t be able to make a vacation spot that everyone would enjoy. It would be monopolized by one segment of the populace.
The first idea that had been set in stone was that we would make two facilities—one for the nobles and one for the general public. Each facility had a separate team working on it, and each team was proceeding with their plans.
I had picked Opera to head the team in charge of the nobles’ facility since she had sensibilities that matched the nobles’ tastes. Meanwhile, I chose Madeleine to lead the facility for the general public due to her flexible way of thinking.
It was Lady Opera’s first time leading a large group and listening to their opinions. I was worried about her at first, but she told me to leave it to her and confidently puffed out her chest as she said so. It was good that she had such confidence...I think.
On the other hand, Madeleine wasn’t exactly an expert on the affairs of the general populace, but she insisted that she wanted to take charge, so I didn’t object. At the moment, there wasn’t really anything to comment on, so I could only hope that it would go well for her.
My role was to check in with both of the teams, listen to their discussions, and gather their opinions.
Fenetra was the one taking charge of things in Diamant. She had completely recovered from her capture and having been severely weakened by Streusel. Now, she was a key figure in the region’s tourism business.
While all these talks were going on, I joined a meeting of Van’s council for the first time. I had thought that I’d earned the ire of the councillors, but they weren’t as stern as I had previously thought. Perhaps they had only acted that way due to the influence of Streusel’s magic. Or perhaps Van’s glares during the meeting were keeping them in check.
Today, I was to report on the progress of the duchy’s tourism industry. Right now, our most pressing problem was managing our transportation networks. Travel to Diamant by carriage took several days—an unreasonable amount of time. That meant the only real option was to fly there on a wyvern. Someone suggested that people could head there on the backs of dragonkin men, but that was quickly rejected. There were men who didn’t have the stamina to fly such a distance and other men who were not used to having people ride on their backs. We couldn’t risk the possibility of accidents happening while they were flying to the hot springs.
I suggested the use of wyverns, which I had brought up before as well. While wyverns were normally used for military purposes, we could also utilize them for the tourism industry. They were friendly creatures and actually quite adorable.
The wyvern squadron had previously complained about funding for wyvern feed and that the wyverns weren’t getting enough exercise. By making them travel between Diamant and the capital, they could raise funds for feed while giving them exercise at the same time. It would certainly kill two birds with one stone.
Duchesse had originally been the one to organize the wyvern squadron. At that time, the Dragon Duchy of Éclair had been newly formed and the Dragon Duke had been absent. They had been wary of assault from neighboring countries, so he’d wanted a unit that could handle aerial combat. They were to serve as a visible threat to outsiders at a time when the duchy was vulnerable.
However, we dragonkin could transform into dragons. I questioned whether the use of wyverns in the military was truly a necessity.
Count Disque Praline raised his hand to offer his opinion. He had once been the councillor most vehemently opposed to my marriage to Van and had supported Fenetra as a candidate to become Dragon Duchess consort.
“As you noted, maintaining our wyverns is a very expensive task. They are difficult to raise, and other countries also fear them as monsters,” he opined.
Indeed, while wyverns were valuable beasts of burden in the Dragon Duchy of Éclair, other nations saw them as terrible monsters. This had been true even in the Kingdom of Sacristain. Villages had suffered attacks from the wyverns, and they had caused several casualties.
It was the dragonkin who had saved the Kingdom of Sacristain from the wyverns. We had tamed these creatures and prevented them from causing more damage. That was how the once-friendly relationship between the Kingdom of Sacristain and the dragonkin had begun.
“Wyverns are a symbol of pride for our knights. Would it not be an insult to use these wyverns for tourism?” he asked.
The councillors began whispering among each other as Count Disque Praline laid out his argument.
I refused to give up and was ready to put up a fight. I glared at Count Disque Praline, challenging him to say something more convincing.
But then, the count loosened his expression. His eyebrows relaxed, and the tension in the room was lifted. It was as if a cat who had been itching for a fight had turned around and left.
“However, times have changed,” he continued. “It’s no longer the same era when the Dragon Duke was absent, and morale among our knights is high. The exploits of knights who fight in their dragon forms have also reached my ears. Our army is powerful enough, even without our wyvern squadron.” He then cast a vote in support of using wyverns for the duchy’s tourism industry.
A majority decision had been reached with very few dissenters, and it was decided to use wyverns for transport.
While I was lost in thought over that turn of events, Count Disque Praline approached me.
“You have earned my respect as the Dragon Duchess consort,” he said. He extended his hand, and I returned his handshake while still not knowing quite what was going on. “We councillors had been dealing with the problem of what to do with the wyverns for a while now.”
Apparently, the councillors had discussed that topic many times, but none of them could come up with a satisfactory solution.
“To be quite frank, your idea was novel and innovative. It showed a new path for the future of our wyverns. However, it would have been an embarrassment if we had accepted your plan so easily.”
That had been the entire reason he’d made a show of arguing and seeing how I would react.
“We cannot have our precious wyverns be treated irresponsibly. I would not have accepted your plan if you had turned to the Dragon Duke for help,” he explained.
While Van had been present during the meeting, in my mind, it had been a battle between me and Count Disque Praline. The thought of asking Van for help hadn’t even crossed my mind.
“I felt your conviction in your gaze. It was then that I truly felt that there was no longer a need to argue.”
So that’s why his expression loosened up back then, I thought. I felt a bit annoyed that he’d had to test me like this, but I finally understood Count Disque Praline’s position.
“If the Dragon Duchy of Éclair were to ever go to war with a neighboring country once more, I could even see you riding a wyvern and leading a charge onto the battlefield,” the count quipped.
“I don’t think I’m that much of a tomboy.”
“A tomboy! Ha ha, perhaps.”
Count Disque Praline politely bowed to me. He then remarked that the Dragon Duchy would remain peaceful as long as I was around.
Having someone much older than my own father bow to me feels really strange. If only Charlotte’s memories had something to tell me about how to handle this situation.
“Well then, I shall take my leave. I look forward to your work on our tourism industry,” Count Disque Praline said and then left.
At some point, Van had approached me. “Let’s head back to our room,” he said. I nodded, and we left the meeting hall.
I sighed in relief while drinking the milk tea that Parfeil had prepared for me.
“I was so worried when Count Disque Praline voiced his opinion,” I said.
Van had been thinking of stepping in between me and the count, but apparently my glare had been so terrifying that he’d flinched.
“You were exerting such a terrifying aura back there,” Van remarked.
“I was just trying my best to win the argument.”
If Van hadn’t read the room and instead had tried to help me out, I would’ve just earned Count Disque Praline’s ire. He hadn’t only been testing me—he’d been testing Van as well.
“To think that Count Disque Praline would test you like that... I knew I should’ve fired him when I had the chance.”
Until we’d resolved all the recent incidents, Van had been considering firing all of his councillors. However, now that they were free of Streusel’s control, they were no longer as rebellious as they had been and were now keeping the status quo.
“They’ve been quite placid lately, so I was worried when that old asshole said that he would voice his opinion,” Van admitted.
“Where did you learn that word?” I asked, addressing his vulgar comment.
“The magic academy.”
The students there were apparently using that insult to bad-mouth a particularly hardheaded teacher who handled their magical medicines classes. It would seem that besides learning magic, Van was learning how to use colorful language as well.
“I really wonder why Duchesse decided to send you to school instead of having a tutor teach you magic.”
“Maybe he thought that being in such a restricted environment would lead me to focus too much on one thing like I used to.”
“I see.”
“If I didn’t go to the magic academy, I would never have met you,” he said. “While there were days when I complained about having to attend, I do have to thank Duchesse for forcing me to go.”