Genjitsushugisha no Oukokukaizouki - Volume 19 - Chapter SS

Side Story 1: It Comes Around Again Just When You Forgot About It

Hello, everyone. It’s Maria E. (for Euphoria) Souma, the former empress of the Gran Chaos Empire and Souma’s current third secondary queen.

In the past, I spent most of my time traveling around the Kingdom, providing humanitarian assistance, and I would only stay in the castle longer on days I could flirt with Souma to my heart’s content. However, ever since the birth of my daughter, Stella, I have been spending more time at Parnam Castle on maternity leave.

Stella is the crystallization of our love for one another. Oh, her puffy little cheeks are just the cutest! Looking at her sleeping face reminds me of Jeanne or Trill when they were little. She’s going to grow up to be so beautiful... But I’m getting sidetracked here.

While I was spending an unusually long time in the castle, I received a call from a certain individual and was instructed to go to a specific room. In that room, I found chairs and desks arranged with equal space between them, along with a lectern and a blackboard at the front. At a glance, I could tell it was a classroom, similar to those found in educational institutions like the academy.

I found myself in that classroom along with Liscia, Aisha, Juna, Roroa, Naden, Yuriga, and Tomoe—eight of us in total. It was a gathering of Souma’s queens, with Tomoe joining us.

I know I was summoned here, but I’m curious about what brought the others together. Everyone except Yuriga naturally took a seat as they entered the classroom, so Yuriga and I followed their example.

Once we were all sitting down, it really started to feel like a classroom.

“Um, why were we called here today...?” I asked Liscia, who was sitting beside me. She gave a wincing smile in response.

“You’ll find out soon enough,” was all she would say.

None of this is adding up. Aisha, Juna, Roroa, and Naden were all nodding in agreement, while Tomoe scratched her cheek awkwardly. It seemed that Yuriga and I were the only ones in the dark.

“Really, what kind of gathering is this?” I wondered aloud.

Yuriga, sitting opposite me from Liscia, replied, “I don’t know. But it makes me mad that Tomoe seems to—”

Suddenly, there was a loud rattle and a bang!

““...!””

Yuriga and I nearly jumped out of our seats in surprise as the door swung open. We looked towards the noise, and there stood a woman with blue hair, little antlers, and a glamorous figure wrapped in a Nine-Headed Dragon Archipelago-style outfit—Lady Excel Walter. She was Juna’s grandmother and had lived for five centuries but retained her youthful appearance because she was a member of the long-lived sea serpent race. I had just discussed her over tea with Juna and Naden recently...

“Come to think of it...you’ve never had much interaction with my grandmother before, have you, Maria?” Juna asked.

“She still doesn’t know what that sea snake’s really like,” Naden added.

Juna and Naden had rather awkward looks on their faces. I couldn’t help but wonder what Excel was truly like.

“Um, what do you mean...?” I asked.

“Hee hee... You’ll find out soon enough,” Juna replied.

“Yeah. More than you ever wanted to know.”

Both of them had a distant look in their eyes.

Reflecting on that moment now, I felt a sense of foreboding.

Lady Excel smiled as she said, “I see everyone’s here.”

Once she confirmed our attendance by looking around, she moved to the lectern and retrieved something from the drawer.

Is that...a white coat, a pointer, and...a professor’s cap?

As I stared in disbelief, Lady Excel quickly adorned herself, transforming into a teacher in no time.

I kind of want to try it myself. As I thought that, Lady Excel smiled and began to speak.

“Now then, I’m sorry for keeping you all waiting,” she said as she quickly wrote “Bridal Training Course” on the board. “We will now begin the thirteenth installment of my bridal training course.”

A...bridal training course?

“What’s that supposed to be...?” Yuriga took the words right out of my mouth.

Lady Excel pointed her finger at Yuriga. “Right. We have some first-time participants among us, so I’ll explain things again. In the relationship between a king and his queens, marital issues are a national crisis. Maintaining good marital relations is the first step towards national stability. These lessons are designed to teach you, the queens, the secrets to maintaining healthy relationships.” Lady Excel spoke with full confidence.

I-Is that really what this is all about? 

Next, Lady Excel looked over at Tomoe, who was seated on the far side.

“There are two queens participating for the first time,” she continued. “Normally, this course is meant for the queens, but I have allowed Tomoe to join as well, at her request.”

“Really? You have?” Liscia asked Tomoe, surprised.

Tomoe nodded a little shyly in response. “Y-Yes, Big Sister. I’m, um, well...engaged to Ichiha, so I thought I should learn about these things...”

“O-Oh. If that’s what you want, then okay...”

“Hee hee, what a wonderful show of initiative! Okay, everyone, give her a round of applause.”

At Lady Excel’s urging, we all clapped, which made things awkward for Tomoe, who blushed and shrank into herself.

“So, what exactly are you going to teach us?” Yuriga demanded, earning a smile from Lady Excel.

“The secrets to maintaining good relations with your husband until death do you part. This includes the psychological aspects of approaching the role of a wife and understanding a man’s psychology, as well as how to fulfill your nightly ‘duties’ as husband and wife.”

““O-Our nightly duties...”” Yuriga and I repeated in surprise at this unexpected topic. While the others appeared to feel awkward about it, they seemed to have accepted the subject matter already.

I see... So this was what they meant when they said I’d find out.

“Now then, Maria.”

“Y-Yes!” I jumped a little when Lady Excel suddenly called on me.

“I want to begin by saying something to you!”

“Wh-What might that be?”

“A lot has happened since His Majesty’s coronation ceremony—from a kaiju attack, to the collapse of the Gran Chaos Empire, to an epidemic, and a war with Sir Fuuga. Because of all this, I haven’t been able to hold these lessons.”

“R-Right...”

The collapse of the Empire and the war with Fuuga were sensitive topics for both Yuriga and me.

But why bring them up now? I wondered.

“However! Despite not having learned anything from me, you have made love with His Majesty, conceived a child, and given birth to an adorable baby girl named Stella. It’s quite marvelous! Okay, everyone, give Maria a round of applause!”

Clap, clap, clap, clap! The others gave me a hearty round of applause.

Huh? What is this? I feel embarrassed, like I’m being put on display for everyone to laugh at. I could understand why Tomoe had earlier shrunk into herself. I looked at Yuriga, who was avoiding eye contact, as if she didn’t want to talk.

“Okay, moving on,” Lady Excel said as she clapped her hands. “As per our usual routine, I will hand each of you a notebook containing the various things I learned from His Majesty after getting him thoroughly drunk. However, as I mentioned earlier, we have new participants with us. In keeping with our past sessions, I’d like to announce what His Majesty thinks of each of them.”

She had my attention now, but I hesitated to ask. If I did, I would probably end up embarrassed.

Lady Excel opened one of the notebooks. “Let’s start with...Tomoe!”

“Huh?! Me?!” Tomoe seemed taken aback. She jumped slightly, then began waving her hands frantically. “But I’m not even Big Brother’s queen!”

“I have, of course, taken that into consideration. For you, I’ve created a notebook based on Ichiha, the information for which I extracted from him in the same way I did from His Majesty.”

“Huh? So it has what Ichiha thinks about me?!”

“Precisely. I planned to do the same for Sir Hakuya and subtly inform Madam Jeanne of what I learned, but...he seemed to be onto me and never showed any openings.”

I’m not sure if that’s good or bad news for Jeanne...

“Now then, I’ll begin reading,” Lady Excel said, ignoring how flustered Lady Tomoe was. “‘Tomoe is like my goddess or my guiding star. She led me out of the darkness, and meeting her felt like a miracle.’”

“Bwhuh?!” Tomoe’s face turned a bright shade of red in an instant.

Well...that was incredible.

At that moment, I realized the purpose of getting Ichiha drunk before asking questions. There wasn’t a hint of pretense in his words; it was impossible not to feel embarrassed by them.

“‘She pulled me out of the shell I had closed myself off in, so now I want to support her. I want to be there as her husband, seeing her smile closer than anyone else. That’s what inspired me to follow in our teacher’s footsteps as prime minister. I want to become a man worthy of Tomoe, a princess of this country. That’s how much I love her.’”

Tomoe was speechless.

I don’t blame her. After hearing such a direct admission of his love for her...

“By the way,” Lady Excel continued, “when I asked him, ‘How many children do you want?’ his response was, ‘I’ll keep going as long as Tomoe still wants more.’”

“Hwahhh...”

Tomoe’s brain seemed to overheat, and she collapsed onto the desk.

“From the looks of it, they’ll be blessed with many children,” Liscia remarked.

“The House of Chima is secure,” Aisha agreed.

Don’t kick her while she’s already down...

“Wow, his words of love sound much weightier than Darlin’s,” Roroa remarked.

“Perhaps it’s because His Majesty is unconsciously aware of his responsibilities as king. I suspect he feels a duty to shower each of us with an equal share of his love,” Juna speculated.

“That makes sense. There’s nothing forcing Ichiha to hold back his love like that,” Naden agreed.

W-Well, I can see how taking multiple lessons like this has gotten them used to this.

“Huh? What? Is that the kind of thing you announce here?” Yuriga was aghast.

She knows she could be next... Wait, I could be too?!

“Now then, Yuriga is next.”

“Urgh... I knew it.”

Yuriga clenched her fists as she braced herself.

“Here is what His Majesty said about you,” Lady Excel began. “‘At first, she felt like my little sister’s friend. Then she started to feel more like a little sister, and with various factors overlapping, she became my wife. I think it’s the same way for Yuriga. Her friend’s big brother just sort of became her husband at some point, so I worry whether she’s been able to accept that.’”

“...”

Yuriga’s expression was inscrutable, but she sat straight and listened. Their relationship had started as a political marriage—a union based on mutual benefit.

Lady Excel continued. “‘Yuriga is a hard worker, almost to a fault. Now that we’re married, I’m sure she’s trying hard to see me as a man and as her husband. When I look at her, it reminds me that I also need to view her as a woman and as my wife. I have to show her so much love that she can hold her head high and say she’s not just my little sister’s friend or someone I think of as a little sister, but truly my woman.’”

“Oof...”

Yuriga flushed slightly; it seemed those words had struck a chord with her.

“‘I think I should be able to love her. She’s becoming more and more womanly, and lately, a lot of the little gestures she makes really do it for me. I don’t know if she’s doing them intentionally, though.’”

“O-Of course I’m not!”

“‘I think I’ll come to love her more and more. I don’t know how Yuriga feels, though.’”

“I-I think...I’ll be fine too.”

“Um, Yuriga...” Lady Excel smiled wryly. “I’m just reading what I wrote down, so you don’t need to respond to everything.”

“Ah...!”

Yuriga’s face turned crimson. Just like Tomoe, she collapsed weakly onto her desk. That made two people down now.

“Even if it’s not possible immediately, you’re both able to show consideration for one another. With time spent together—including time spent in bed—you’ll naturally become a good couple,” Lady Excel concluded.

D-Didn’t she just say something incredible there? Not that I think Yuriga heard it...

“S-So, is this the trial that awaits those who marry into this country?” I murmured, shuddering.

“Uh, no, there’s no trial. It’s just our family that’s like this,” Liscia said.

“I really must apologize for my grandmother,” Juna added.

O-Oh, I see.

Next, Lady Excel looked at me. “Finally, we have Maria.”

“R-Right.”

Since I’m third in line, resignation has set in... No, I’m prepared for it. I’m definitely curious about what Souma thinks of me anyway.

“Here is what His Majesty said: ‘She’s a partner...I suppose?’”

“A partner, you say?”

For a moment, I wasn’t sure what that meant, so I repeated it. Lady Excel nodded.

“‘We only married recently, but we’ve known each other much longer than that. We’ve been communicating since just after I met Roroa, albeit over the broadcast.’”

“Ohh, that’s right, huh?” Roroa said, nodding. “Now that he mentions it, I’m thinkin’ that’s right.”

If I recall, during my first broadcast meeting with Souma, he was complaining about Roroa having foisted her country on him, so that’s likely how long we’ve known each other...

“‘Ever since that time, we’ve been partners, fighting in the same arena. In Liscia’s case, she has always been a queen or a retainer, working to support me from a position lower than mine. However, the one who stood beside me as a fellow ruler was Maria. Kuu and Shabon joined her later on, but until then, it felt like it was just the two of us, shouldering the burdens of the world.’”

“...”

I feel the same way. Our personalities, approaches to our goals, and the ideals we pursued were all different. Yet, despite these differences, we took each other’s hands and, remarkably, learned to trust one another.

“If we’re facing in opposite directions, we can eliminate our blind spots by cooperating.”

Those words I had said to Jeanne had been sincere. The truth was, Souma had been a great ally up until the Empire collapsed, and even afterwards he freed me from the burden of sovereignty and welcomed me as a woman.

“‘Because we’ve shared so many good and bad times together, it felt so natural when she became my bride. By that point, she had already become as irreplaceable a partner as Liscia and the others.’”

“Yes, I agree... Because I felt the same way.”

Thinking back to the decision I made to split from the Empire, I reflected on my hopes for the future. I had wanted to marry Souma and live a normal life. At that time, it seemed like a dream—an unattainable wish. But now, it had come true. Not only that, but I’d also been able to engage in the philanthropic work I had hoped to undertake once I became an ordinary woman, so I’d received even more than I ever wished for.

And all of this is thanks to Souma... I wish I could show this future to my past self, who felt so trapped. The thought warmed my heart.

“I feel like I can understand how Stella was born so easily,” Naden said.

“They were keeping up a long-distance romance. I can’t blame them for getting so fired up once they were finally together,” Liscia added. They nodded sagely.

Huh? Did I get all fired up...? Maybe I did. After all, I got pregnant with Stella pretty quickly.

Lady Excel clapped her hands. “I have nothing more to say about Maria’s relationship with His Majesty. I think you two should continue on the path you’re on and be happy together forever.”

After concluding that discussion, Lady Excel took out another notebook.

“Now then... That wraps up the introductions. Next, we’ll continue with my regular lessons on husband psychology, wife mindset, and how to keep things exciting in the bedroom. But first...”

W-Wow, that’s some incredible stuff she’s teaching. I may learn something.

“It looks like I have an extra notebook here... What was this one for again, I wonder?” Lady Excel said as she began flipping through it.

A dubious look crossed her face. Had something not meant for the lesson slipped in?

“Let’s see... ‘Natural... That’s the only word for it. I admire her freedom, with nothing burdening her. In my old world, I always assumed I’d marry a woman like her and have an ordinary family someday. That’s what she reminds me of.’”

“““...”””

Wait... Who said that, and about whom? From the mention of a past world, I could only assume it was Souma’s opinion of someone.

“‘Right now, we’re more like friends. But sometimes I imagine things. Like, what if the summoning had gone awry, and I had appeared outside the castle instead? And what if I met her by chance in the town? I can’t help but think things still would have worked out somehow. I mean, there were stories like that in my old world...’ Oh! I remember now. I asked him this on a whim, so it has nothing to do with anything.” Lady Excel shut her notebook tightly.

“Hold on! That’s something you got out of Souma, right?!”

“Who’d Darlin’ say that about?!”

Liscia and Roroa pressed in towards Lady Excel.

“It doesn’t seem to apply to any of us.”

“A secret lover...? Wait, there’s no way Souma has time for that.”

“His Majesty is with one of us at all times, after all.”

Juna, Naden, and Aisha remarked, discussing it with serious expressions.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious. The person who had dropped this bombshell casually said, “Hee hee, don’t you worry about it. I only asked out of personal curiosity,” while sporting an amused smile.

She knew exactly the reaction this would get. I see Lady Excel likes to stir up trouble. As I thought that, I picked up the booklet on my desk, which looked like a textbook for the course. Flipping through, my eyes landed on the words: “Stimulation is important in maintaining good marital relations.”

I see... The reason the others can keep their relationships so fresh is that they’re all influenced by Souma’s every reaction. In that case...maybe I should try acting jealous and interrogate Souma too? Like I could ask, “Who is this mystery girl everyone is talking about?” or “Are you cheating when you already have so many darling wives?” I wonder how Souma would respond? Would he go into a panic? Sorry if I end up troubling you. But...forgive me, okay? Because I want to keep things lovey-dovey between us forever.

Even as Stella grows up, leaves the nest, and after that... Forever.

Hee hee. I’m having a lot of fun for some reason, I thought to myself as I watched everyone make a ruckus.