The king tapped his sceptre firmly, twice upon the floor. The hall came to order rather quickly afterwards. There was a rather important matter to handle even now, and they still needed to settle the Theocracy.
"Let it be official, my daughter Renner is engaged to be married, we can hold a formal wedding at a later time. And with that, my last child, Prince Zanac, will be formally announced as the crown prince, when such a time we are ready and prepared. There is something I'd like to ask of my new extended family."
"Oh? Go ahead Ramram."
"Would it be possible to give Zanac a tutor for all the ins and outs?"
"Of course, that's why I brought these two here?" Night Silver giggled. "Don't worry, he'll be ready to bear the weight of such a title in as little as two months. We can even have the brothers-in-law go through the training together."
"What a wonderful idea! Good, let the matter be settled there. Now, for us to handle the matter of war."
"Father, do we really have to continue warring with Baharuth, while they don't have as many people openly worshiping Mother, there are still many who believe in her divine majesty. Can we not push it off at the very least?" Marquess Pespea asked, completely out of line.
"This is a war we should put off as long as possible, but also begin amassing our forces. We will need help in this war…" Ramposa said, causing his eldest daughter to bite her lip. "We are not going to war with Baharuth again. Instead, we will be allying with them against a much greater foe… The Slane Theocracy."
"So, you've finally come around. Good."
"Majesty, if I may, how are we to form this alliance exactly?"
"My son will take a bride from their country to be his queen. If that doesn't work, we can sit down for a summit to discuss it. If the blood of the one Empress still runs through the imperial family, then there's a chance…"
"It does, there's no need to worry about that." Night Silver said, and then with a gentle clap of her hands… "Now then, girls, let us depart from all these smelly men and partake of some delicious teas, and talk gossip."
"That does sound lovely." Marquess Pespea cheerfully noted, then frowned. "I'm afraid I have no tea to share this time."
"Not to worry, just tell us a good story dear sister, and all will be forgiven." Renner said gracefully, bouncing down the steps to join Night Silver and her sister. "I have a few guests arriving soon, I wonder if it's alright if they join us, Mother?"
"I don't see why not. Come on, let's go."
The scene was one not a single one of the men in the hall dared to stop, each opting to remain silent as the four ladies, and little girl left. The Goddess, her granddaughter, Princess Renner, and Marquess Pespea simply demanded attention without uttering any words, the ever joyful bundle of energy known as Nemu simply melted hearts holding Night Silver's hand.
"Now then, are there any opposed to the idea of offering marriage as a guarantee of alliance?"
"I have none, instead Majesty, I'd like permission to renounce the marriage arrangement my daughter has with Barbro. And with your permission, let it be immediate."
"Are you certain of this?"
"Yes, like I've said, if the former prince is no longer seen as worthy by your majesty, let alone the goddess, the very same both my wife and daughter all but mimic entirely, thankfully not shamelessly baring their bosom… Then he is unworthy of my daughter. This is something you have agreed to in the past as well your majesty. Surely you wouldn't condemn a woman with all the qualities worthy of a queen to be, to remain stuck with a man not worthy of the crown?"
"You do make a fine point Marquis Boullope. It seems my son has lost a lot today. Bring me the annulment documentation. Let it be known the engagement between the now disgraced prince, and Marquis Boullope's beloved daughter is no longer valid."
"Much appreciated your majesty."
"Not to pry, but who would you marry her to now?"
"It is a bit late, fortunately her chastity is still intact. So it won't be too difficult to manage."
"Good, now, let us discuss any other matters others may have… Carne village chief do you have any needs?"
"No, your majesty, Carne village is currently undergoing complete renovations under the purview of the lady goddess' friends. Not even I know how far things have come in the time I've been away. Each of them are capable of immense magic, so anything is possible. And Tus Nadair has begun construction of a massive underground living space. I'm certain we will soon have access to a great deal of resources."
"Good- WAIT, those fabled underground resource treasure troves, where food grows constantly. It seems calling it a duchy was the right call."
The gathering of lords would continue on for a while longer, but they took a break to relax and find a more comfortable setting. This also gave them ample time to relay some of the more urgent matters to their people, like the dissolution of Prince Barbro's engagement, which quickly sparked rumors, many of which spilled out into the city at large.
…
The capital's adventurer's guild was currently a buzz with the numerous rumors having cropped up as a result of so many different theories. A certain group of roses were heading out of meeting with the master, and overheard some rumors.
"Captain, what do you think all that noise is about, huh?"
"Huh? It's not like I know, but I'm sure there will be some gossip about it at tea time. Which… seems like it's coming up-" she paused, having picked up someone's voice at table to the side. "You there, what did you just say?"
"Huh, AH… Blue Rose captain!"
"Repeat what you just said."
"About what?"
"About the woman!"
"Oh, uh, she wore a dress with no front or back. It looked designed with breastfeeding in mind."
"What was she!?"
"Huh?"
"Her ears."
"I don't know for sure, I only saw her breasts… I couldn't focus on anything else."
"Hmph, leave it to a man to get distracted by what's meant for children. Come on ladies let's go. All of us this time."
…