Chapter 1:
Norn’s Betrothal (Part 1)
A FEW MONTHS HAD PASSED since the battle in the Biheiril Kingdom. The Man-God kept quiet after what happened, and as time passed, no new enemies made themselves known. That didn’t change my job, of course. I quietly kept up my travels, laying the groundwork for the war with Laplace eighty years from now.
Even so, I’d been at home a lot lately because, as it turns out, Eris and Roxy were both pregnant at the same time. I kinda cut loose after defeating Geese, so I guess you reap what you sow! While I was happy with the way things turned out, it had been said that pregnancy would weaken their destinies and made them easier targets for the Man-God. So while my wives were pregnant, I wanted to be by their sides as much as possible.
In the meantime, I spent my days processing the intelligence that came in from the mercenary band outposts around the world, meeting with Orsted to discuss our next moves, and enjoying some long-overdue family time.
This is a story from one of those days. Orsted and I were having a meeting about what we knew regarding my next destination. It was something about how the next in line for the throne of that kingdom was still young, yet showed promise. It seemed like a good idea to start putting things in motion now, so we could put him to good use later.
Orsted stayed silent without offering any comment on how to win over the next ruler. I figured he must have had his reasons. Maybe there was some person key to pulling it off who wasn’t in this loop. Or it could be that he thought there was no surefire way to do it right now, so we should wait until a later point in time.
So what should I do?
I looked down at the notes I’d taken based on the portrait that Orsted had painted of this amazing heir and thought hard.
Just then, he spoke.
“Have Norn Greyrat get married.”
“Wha…?”
Out of nowhere, Orsted broke his silence with this bizarre statement.
Although I was being careful with how I spoke around Orsted, I still almost blurted out, “What the hell are you talking about?!” It was that jarring.
Right now, we were thinking about how to win over the amazing heir. What Orsted said was totally irrelevant. But then I started to wonder… Was it really irrelevant?
And then it occurred to me.
“Do you mean,” I said slowly, “a political marriage?”
It was the only thing that made sense with the conversation we were having.
“I wouldn’t call it political, but when I consider the future… Well.”
“So you’re saying…I can’t do it alone?”
That was frustrating to hear. It meant Orsted had decided I couldn’t talk this amazing heir into an alliance. I wouldn’t have minded if he said that outright—hell, even I wasn’t confident I could do it by myself. I had no idea what I could even say to sway him. If he were a skirt-chaser like Paul, and the only way to get him on our side were to give him a woman, then Orsted’s proposal would have made sense.
But Norn was out of the question.
I knew Norn would get married someday, but there was no way I would hand her over to someone who was a womanizer like Paul. Norn had to marry someone more…earnest. And I had to approve of him—no way I’d just ship her off to some random guy. I’d never be able to face Paul again. You never cast aside family for the sake of a goal, no matter how lofty.
“No,” Orsted said.
“Then why?”
“The child of Norn Greyrat was a help to me.”
“Help…? So this has nothing to do with Norn; you need her child?”
“I do not need it. The child will not be of great importance in this loop.”
He was dancing around the point. Orsted always spoke in riddles, but based on our other conversations up until now, I got the gist of what he meant. Basically, this was groundwork. Norn’s child might not be important, but it had been useful to him in past loops, so he would make the play just in case—something like that.
“Very well.” I stood up. I looked down at Orsted, who was still seated and looking up at me. He wasn’t wearing his helmet. He had the same scary look as ever, but I bet my face was even scarier.
“If you are going to insist on this, then come to the northern forest at noon three days from now.”
Fear not, Norn. I shall defend your virtue. I will stand my ground, even if I have to face Orsted. Paul, please… Give me strength. Give me the strength to vanquish this mighty foe and live to tell the tale.
“Wait. You misunderstand.”
“I do?”
“Even I, in the course of these endlessly repeating two centuries, have people for whom I care. Norn Greyrat’s child is one such person. She has helped me, coming to my aid time and time again. It is for this reason that I wish to grant her life in this world. As things are, this will not come to pass.”
It was true that I never saw Norn with boys. She’d graduated, but she was still living at home, same as always. That wasn’t to say she was freeloading, however. Through her school connections, she’d joined the magic guild and was doing clerical work at their central branch. There were plenty of guys at the guild, but Norn didn’t seem to care for them. She never went out, even on her days off; rather, she was always at home helping with the kids or the housework. Even as a student, I didn’t think she’d dated anyone.
I honestly thought she might go her whole life without ever tying the knot.
Hmm. In this world, people with status seemed to do arranged marriages a lot, and while mine was a bit sketchy, it had provided me with connections and influence. Maybe this wasn’t such an outlandish proposal.
“Okay, but a child isn’t made by one person. It’s not like any old partner will result in the same child being born, right?”
We were talking about a king, so he had plenty of status, but I wasn’t going to consent. Not until I’d seen him with my own eyes and checked out what sort of man he was.
“Or does this amazing heir become Norn’s partner in the future?” I asked, glaring at Orsted. He was frowning. His expression was as scary as ever, but I’d seen this look before. It was his “What the hell are you talking about?” face.
The ends of his eyebrows twitched as though in surprise, and he said, “No… Forgive me. It is unrelated to that.”
“Huh?”
“This is another matter.”
Another matter…? Ah, that’s what he meant?
“So this wasn’t about our strategy for the next country? We’re just talking about Norn’s love life?”
“Yes.”
Huh. Well, all right, then.
“Sir Orsted.”
“Yes?”
“When you change the subject, it’s good to lead into it with something like ‘Changing the subject,’ or ‘By the way…’”
“That is true. I will be careful in the future.”
With all that smoothed over, I settled back into my seat.