I glanced at my two vassals sitting on either side of me. Laviala looked a bit sad. She had been like my wife for quite some time, after all. I felt bad about it, too, but I was sure she understood. Laviala gave a slight nod before confidently saying, “Lord Alsrod, by all means, you should get married. It’s important now that both houses unite.” She was my vassal to the end. If we’d both been commoners, I wouldn’t have had to put her through this. She would’ve been able to ask me not to cheat, with confidence. I wanted to do something to repay her, even a little. “Lord Brantaar, there’s one thing I should mention in advance. Due to my position, I cannot be without children. I intend to cherish my wife, but I would like your leave to have concubines as well.” “Don’t worry. I have several children by my mistresses, too. A lack of an heir can lead to civil war. Having children is another honorable way to protect your country.” Ayles was famous for having many lovers. Although in his case, many of them were daughters of lords he’d defeated. This was advantageous when assimilating the people of a conquered region, but on the other hand, there was a possibility those children would want revenge on Ayles for their clan, so it was risky, too. “If I can have your daughter’s consent, I will happily accept.” Ayles nodded deeply. “Very well. May I suggest you ask her directly, then?” He then loudly clapped his hands twice. The doors in the back opened, and a young girl in a dress emerged. She was about fifteen or sixteen years old. Unlike her blond father, she had smooth jet-black hair. Maybe she was of eastern descent. The determined expression on her face told me she was bursting to the brim with confidence. She was sweet yet not delicate—like a single sunflower blooming in a wasteland. I could feel myself getting lost in her large, round eyes. “I am Seraphina Caltis, daughter of Ayles Caltis.” “It is an honor to meet you.” I stood up to greet her. I had become a count myself, but she had been born as the daughter of a count. I chose to act humble to satisfy her pride, to be safe.
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She slowly walked up to me and grasped my hand tightly. “The honor is all mine. You’re obviously a hero.” “I think you give me too much credit.” “It’s been my dream to marry a hero. It would make life more interesting, don’t you think?” She smiled from ear to ear, like a sunflower in full bloom. “I won’t ask you to believe me, but back when you built that fort and created havoc in my country, I had a feeling I would marry you someday. I’d love to see you do it again—outside of Mineria. I’m sure I will enjoy the show.” “Indeed. If you’ll be my wife, that would be my natural duty as husband.” “Yes, otherwise, I would have to either run away or kill you,” she replied provocatively. I could sense Laviala humphing, but to be honest, I thought I could get along with this girl for a long time—alive, of course. “If you kill me, I think you’ll regret it. I mean, there aren’t many heroes to choose from.” “You really are a funny man, Alsrod Nayvil. By the way, my job is Saint. It’s quite a rare profession. I’m told I can raise the luck of people near me by thirty percent. Fortune will surely turn in your favor.” Luck was difficult to measure in percentages, but it was believable enough. Job-related abilities had been said to do as much ever since the olden days. “What’s your profession?” she asked. “I told you mine, so you’ll return the favor, won’t you?” “I think you’ll be familiar with it. It’s Hero, of course,” I replied, gazing into her eyes. For just a moment, Seraphina blushed as if embarrassed. She may have been strong-willed, but she wasn’t used to men. Besides, she was Ayles’s daughter, of all people. There was no such thing as Hero among typical professions. It was more of a concept than a job title. Even so, I really did intend to become a hero, and my Oda Nobunaga profession was more or less the same thing. Seraphina turned to face her father. “Father, I’ll be joining him in Nayvil. Thank you for raising me.” Ayles let out a sigh that seemed to include a great deal of different meanings. “You must have a sense of Seraphina’s personality now, Lord Nayvil, but she’s a smart girl. It’s not parental bias when I say I think you’ll be good together.” “Yes, sir. I’ll do my best to make your daughter happy.” “For my part, I am happy for a man to rein in my daughter, though. I wish you both the best.” And so the conference between Nayvil and Mineria ended peacefully. The alliance was more or less established with the wedding planned. Both parties made a nonaggression pact and agreed that they would invade only unrelated territories going forward. Plans were made to make trade more convenient as well. For merchants with travel permits, protections were added, such as lending them horses to get to the other country and giving them priority at inns along the highway. The formal wedding ceremony was set to be held a month later, at the same temple as the conference. It had been just a month since I’d first met Seraphina, and I couldn’t help but say to her, “You look lovely.” Seraphina was wearing her wedding dress; it looked so good on her, it was as if she’d been born to wear it. She was more vivacious than ever. “Tomboy or not, you really are a true count’s daughter.” “I dressed up just for you, my dear husband!” Seraphina twirled around in front of me, and the fabric swished around her legs. “Make me the happiest girl in the country. My Saint abilities are even more effective on people I love.” “I guess you’ll be making me even luckier, then.” Seraphina embraced me. “I really, truly love you, my darling!” Back when I ruled half a village, I hadn’t thought much of political marriages, but maybe this wouldn’t be too bad.