BXBX NOVEL 102 - - The 12Th Episode. - No, No, No.
"Yes, that\'s right. I\'m going to be 20 years old soon, and I want to make my 20s a good decade."
In my previous life, my twenties were a dark time for me. Jobs were scarce, and the ones I finally got were hard. Days when I couldn\'t go home, couldn\'t rest, couldn\'t fall down. Women were rejecting me, and I found myself in my 30s. Oh... I don\'t want to remember those days.
"The reconstruction of Niza\'s farmland is already waiting for the harvest, so why don\'t we have a birthday party for me?
Another party, sir?
"You don\'t like Gong?"
"Of course, I agree.
"I agree! This time I\'ll cook too!"
"Yes. How about Ferris as head cook this time?
"Oh no, I can\'t eat!
The dining room erupts in laughter. Then I\'ll go shopping..." and so on.
"I have a favor to ask of Linos. I have a favor to ask of Rinos.
Suddenly Rico began to speak quietly.
"What\'s wrong, Rico? What is it, please?"
"One or two more in Linos would be fine. I want you to take a new wife.
"What? What do you mean?"
"Mister Rico..."
"Sister Rico!"
May is in tears. But Rico\'s expression does not change. She opens her mouth again in a calm and collected manner.
"This is what I have been talking about with May... Three years have passed since I married Linos. Neither May nor I have been able to have children. I don\'t think we can go on like this from now on. So, I would like you to take a new wife."
"You\'ve only been married three years. There\'s no need to be in such a hurry..."
I\'m already 26 years old.
In a previous life, this would be a perfectly acceptable age, but the average life expectancy in this world is 50 years old. If Rico were to have a child, it would certainly be a very old birth.
"It is normal for royalty and nobility to consider a new wife or concubine if they have not had a child after three years of marriage.
"I\'m not going to get a new wife."
"Master..."
Everyone looks relieved.
"Linos. This house is an honorary marquisate. And the brother-in-law of the Emperor of the Hereditary Empire. The question of succession is important.
No, I am not interested in the affairs of noble families. Rico and May and all of you are enough for me. I have no complaints. I\'m happy enough. I don\'t want more. If you can\'t have children, then don\'t. We\'ll all grow old together..."
"Linos ！！！！！！！！"
Rico shouts in a surprisingly loud voice. The dining room goes quiet as if hit by water.
"You are indebted to Mrs. Batham and her family, aren\'t you? Why not repay that debt by keeping the Bartham family alive? When he adopted you, wasn\'t he thinking of keeping the family name alive?"
"It is true that I was supposed to be adopted into the Bartham family. It was the Regent\'s order for me to serve as a court warder."
"The letter from Mr. Bartham sent to the Vizier Gremont said that he was glad to see the family name survive."
"..."
"It is a natural desire for a nobleman to pass on the family name he has inherited from his ancestors to future generations."
"Okay. Then, when I die, you can adopt a child. Then the family name will remain.
"Linos..."
"It\'s not Rico\'s fault or May\'s that we can\'t have children. Maybe it\'s my fault. So Rico, Mei, I beg you both to stop blaming yourselves."
The place completely fell apart. Everyone cleaned up and silently retreated to their rooms. May went to her lab and Rico went to his room.
I took a bath alone for the first time in a long time, and slept alone in my big bed. Someone was always by my side, a beautiful image of Rico or May next to me, but today there was no one to my right or left. I had a hard time falling asleep.
In the morning, Rico and May are still awkward. Everyone is treating us like we\'re a tumor.
I try to talk to Jeneha and Irimo, who is standing next to me, about Rico. Both of them are positive about getting a new wife. If they cannot have children, they will get a new wife. This seems to be a common sense among the demons.
Suddenly I want to hear other people\'s opinions, so I go to visit Sandille with tribute and sake... but not to the Omi-sama. He was happy to see me... or rather, to see the sake and snacks, and showed me to another room. Over drinks with the old fox, we discuss what I have just said.
"Hm. From my point of view, you\'re a remarkable woman. That\'s not easy to say."
"I see..."
But you\'re different. A normal man would try to have a concubine without being asked.
"I have no complaints about my wife at the moment.
"I suppose you want me to tell you that you don\'t have to get a new wife, but that won\'t solve anything.
Well, that\'s true, but...
"My Lord Rinos, your highness wants to see you."
From outside the room comes the voice of Chie, the courtesan. That\'s the fox goddess. She seems to have realized I\'m here. Since there\'s no way to avoid being discovered, Sandille urges me to go to the princess\'s room.
"I heard what you said. Why didn\'t you come to me for advice? You smell of water.
"Do you have a solution for this?"
"Fool! You\'re the one who\'s going to fix it. I know how your wife feels and that\'s why I wanted to tell you. You are troubled because you don\'t understand her feelings, aren\'t you?"
"Yes..."
"She is very determined. Think about it. Who would willingly give another woman to her husband? But if you ask me to marry another woman, it is because you wish to bequeath your offspring to her at all costs. It is difficult to overturn that will. If you do not speak to your wife with consideration for her determination and feelings, you will not be able to shorten the distance between you.
"It\'s difficult..."
"If you and your wife had a child, there would be no problem.
"Does the great-grandmother have that divine power...?"
"No!"
You answered immediately!
"If it\'s a child-bearing god, it\'s the dog god, isn\'t it? Where is he?"
"Blanche, I think."
That\'s a long way to go.
Where is it?
It\'s about half a year\'s ride on horseback from your compound.
That\'s impossible.
Anyway, the best thing to do is to consider your wife\'s feelings.
"Yes, thank you."
I returned to the house with a feeling of both understanding and uncertainty.
Rico and May are still the same. They haven\'t spoken for two whole days, which is something that has never happened before. They both avoid me and go into their rooms. And again, I bathe alone and go to bed alone.
And that night I had a dream.
Someone was angry with me. It was Eril. It\'s been a long time, Eril. What\'s wrong? What are you mad about? Wait a minute, miss. I don\'t understand why you\'re so angry. Please tell me why...
I try so hard to talk to her, but she won\'t stop her anger. She puts her left hand on her waist and points at me with her right hand. This is her style when she is upset with me.
For some reason I don\'t hear Eryl\'s voice. If it were usual Eril, she would pull out her wooden sword and slash at me, but for some reason she keeps getting angry.
With an angry look on his face, Eryl points sharply in the direction right beside me. What the hell is that? There\'s nothing in that direction, okay? It\'s a forest that way, okay? Eril? Hey, Eril.
Eryl has his hands on his hips and he\'s staring at me. Hey, Eril, what\'s up? What\'s going on?
I\'m awake. What the hell did Eryl want to say? Was he pointing into the forest? What is it...? I think about going into the forest once, and I think about Rico and Mei\'s determination and feelings.
Rico is a possessive woman. It must have taken a lot of determination for such a woman to take May as a wife. And now, a new wife would be like a denial of her own existence for Rico. And yet, he still dared to do it...
I think about it as I fall asleep in my bed, but I still can\'t come up with an answer. The night has already begun to grow light.
"...I see. Don\'t think, just do what you feel. That\'s what Eryl used to say. Then I shouldn\'t dare to do anything about it.
I get out of bed and head for Rico\'s room. There is a dim light leaking from the room.
I knock on the door. There is no answer.
"Rico, are you awake? Are you coming in?"
Quietly, he opens the door and enters the room. Rico is still in bed, his back to me.
"Rico, I\'ve been thinking... I think I should do what you want."
"..."
"But you can\'t choose a new wife from me. Because I love Rico. So you and May must choose your new wives. I\'ll accept a wife that you both agree on."
"..."
"... Riko?"
Rico\'s shoulders tremble faintly.
"... It\'s cruel."
"..."
"I can\'t do that. Please choose any woman you like. I can\'t..."
Rico\'s voice was tearful as he struggled to get the words out.
"Rico can\'t choose? That\'s why it\'s okay. You can stay with Rico and May for a while. A man can have children at any age. It doesn\'t have to be right now. I\'d rather have someone choose for me.
"What... do you mean?"
Rico gets up and looks at me closely. Her eyes are red with tears.
"Because Rico was introduced to me by the Emperor, and May suggested that I take him as my wife. I had no intention of getting married, but you two encouraged me to have such a wonderful wife. So, Rico and Mei, please choose a new wife for me. Take your time. I\'m open to anyone who meets their criteria."
"Linos~"
Rico cries, his face in my chest. I hold her gently.
"Can I ask you to take care of my new wife?"
Rico nodded silently.
"Then let\'s go and ask May for a favor, too."
Rico said he would go with me to May\'s. I headed downstairs to the lab, holding hands with Rico.
May was lying on her desk. She must have heard our footsteps, because she sat up as we entered the room. I told her the same thing as Rico and asked May to help Rico.
May was crying, too. She was crying just like Rico. And she said, "Yes, sir," while crying.
"By the way, how have you guys been bathing for the past two days?"
"I was... wiping myself with hot water."
I used a purification spell.
"...So, do you want to take a bath now?"
"""Hi."""
And so I burned for a few hours until breakfast. I hugged them and expressed my love for them all over my body. I didn\'t tell Peris and the others that I had to bathe them again because all three of them were so sweaty, even their hair was soaked with sweat.
The harvest season was just around the corner.