In the great hall, a glittering ball and lavish feast were in full swing.
Gideon's appearance had cast an uneasy shadow over the room, but now, to the elegant strains of the musicians, the nobles—dressed in splendid gowns and tunics—glided lightly across the floor.
As the guests of honor, Yuri and the others had been given a set of small tables on the dais, where they sat around them in a loose U-shape.
"Whew... that man was awful. Lady Celine, Lotte, Lia—are you all right?"
With a faintly weary look on his face, Yuri glanced from one of the three women to the next.
Lieselotte knit her brows, but nodded at once. Ophelia lowered her eyes and gave a restrained nod. And Celine wore a graceful smile.
"Good. You all seem all right."
Just as Yuri let out a breath of relief, Ophelia suddenly lifted her head.
The abrupt movement sent a flicker of unease through him.
"...M-my lord, um... this 'Lia'... did you mean me?"
She asked the question hesitantly.
"Ophelia's a little long, so I thought I'd try calling you Lia... Was that no good?"
"N-no, not at all. If you would call me that... I would be happy."
Ophelia smiled modestly, but her cheeks had turned faintly pink.
She lowered her gaze again, looking strangely self-conscious.
Watching that, Celine took on an expression that was difficult to describe—one that seemed, if anything, faintly displeased.
"Um... is something wrong?"
Turning to Celine beside him, Yuri asked in a tone that carefully tested her mood.
"My lord husband, Liese is Lotte, Ophelia is Lia, and yet I alone am still addressed with a title. Is that not a little unfair?"
She spoke with a slight pout, gazing straight at him.
"Huh? But you're the lady of the domain, Lady Celine..."
Yuri answered in obvious confusion.
To him, Celine was both the ruler of the domain and the woman who would become his wife.
It only felt natural that he should show her proper respect.
And yet, still smiling, Celine said only,
"My lord husband,"
in a voice so gentle it sounded almost like a soft rebuke.
That calm gaze pricked at Yuri's chest.
I need to come up with something a little more thoughtful...
Yuri thought for a moment, then suddenly spoke.
"Then... how about Celia?"
The moment he said it, Celine's eyes lit up.
"C-Celia?"
She stared at him in shock, and little by little her expression melted into bliss.
"Yeah. I'd be happy if you liked it... What do you think?"
A little embarrassed, Yuri watched her reaction.
"Celia... You mean Celia!"
Celine repeated the name over and over, looking as excited as a young girl.
Her face was full of smiles, and her delight showed plainly.
"My lord husband, thank you.
I'm truly delighted."
I didn't think she'd be this happy about it...
It was rare for Celine to show this much emotion so openly.
Seeing her like that, Yuri could only smile awkwardly in return.
"Hehe... Celia, Celia.
Whatever shall I do? Isn't it almost too adorable for me?"
Celine's cheeks were faintly flushed, and as though embarrassment and joy had tangled together inside her, she swayed happily in place, murmuring to herself over and over.
Good. Looks like she really likes it.
Relieved, Yuri let out a quiet breath in his heart.
And then, amid that gentle atmosphere, he suddenly felt someone's gaze.
Ophelia was staring fixedly at his hand.
Puzzled, Yuri looked down at it himself, but he felt nothing out of the ordinary.
Or rather, if there was anything strange, it was the fact that the wound which had been bleeding only a short while ago was now completely healed.
But to Yuri, that was so ordinary it had never even occurred to him to remark on it.
When Ophelia saw him flexing his hand open and shut to check it, astonishment crossed her face.
Beside her, Lieselotte looked as if she had just realized she had forgotten something important.
"My lord, that hand of yours... it was injured only a little while ago, and yet it has already healed?
I would not think such a thing possible without healing magic..."
At Ophelia's words, Yuri went stiff for a moment.
"Uh, well, you know, that.
It just... probably wasn't a serious wound."
As he said it, Yuri's eyes darted about, and he could feel cold sweat running down his back.
Trying to avoid Ophelia's earnest gaze, he looked down at his own hand—but the fact that it was now completely unmarked only made it stand out more.
"That cannot be right. A shard of glass had pierced it, had it not?"
Ophelia's direct gaze drove straight into him.
True... it really was lodged in there...
Flustered, Yuri tried to laugh it off, but inwardly he was already at his limit.
He knew he had to say something, yet the words would not come.
"Um... no, it's just, maybe my constitution...
Like, I heal quickly, or something like that..."
As Yuri stumbled his way through the excuse, Lieselotte came to his rescue.
"Ophelia, I believe it is simply his constitution.
He must just heal unusually quickly.
You will find life easier from now on if you think of Lord Yuri as that sort of creature."
"What exactly is that supposed to mean? 'He heals quickly' does not explain a wound like that at all... What is going on here?"
Ophelia looked at Yuri with open suspicion.
"Ah, yes, right, right. I'm some kind of creature that recovers from all sorts of things unusually fast... a creature? Wait, what do you mean, creature?"
Yuri tried to laugh his way out of it, but Ophelia's stare remained sharp and merciless.
"What do you mean?"
"Mm, how do I put it... Even after hard exercise, I never get tired at all...
And even at night, I still have energy left over.
If anything, I can't sleep unless I work my body a little more."
Yuri let the words fall out without attaching any deeper meaning to them.
But the very next moment, both Lieselotte and Ophelia turned bright red and hurriedly looked away.
Huh? Why that reaction all of a sudden...?
Yuri tilted his head in bafflement, and Lieselotte, clearly flustered, hastily changed the subject.
"M-more importantly, what are we going to do?
If they refuse to let us conduct business in the March of Ishurias, we will have a serious problem."
"Huh, really? I thought things had already been settled with the Santo Elmo Trading Company Lady Liliana introduced us to."
At Yuri's question, Lieselotte's face clouded for a moment, and her gaze dropped slightly.
"Yes, but... Gideon's inner circle is proving a little troublesome."
"Ah, right. Those three."
Letting out a sigh, Yuri spoke as though the memory had just returned to him.
"The head of the Water Transport Guild, the head of the Trade Guild, and the head of the Fielders' Guild."
Chewing anxiously at her thumbnail, Ophelia muttered the words with a grim expression.
"That's right.
The March of Ishurias is a port domain, sustained by trade with the Free City-States and the Hakuou Imperial State...
so those three wield a great deal of influence."
As Yuri listened to Lieselotte's explanation, he began to grasp just how serious the problem was.
The Water Transport Guild was an organization made up of shipowners who handled transport by vessel. Through shipbuilding, repairs, and various forms of insurance, it spread the risks borne by its members and managed the waterways and shipping routes.
The Trade Guild was an organization of merchants engaged in commerce with the Free City-States and the Hakuou Imperial State. It negotiated—and effectively monopolized—the laws and regulations governing trade with the lords and rulers of each city.
The Fielders' Guild was an organization of mercenary companies whose work centered on reconnaissance and escort duty. It handled job brokerage and oversaw the mercenary clans.
Ishurias was also linked to the royal capital by canal, so without their cooperation, proper trade itself might become impossible.
For that matter, there was also an Adventurers' Guild, separate from the Fielders' Guild.
The Adventurers' Guild was the institution that purchased magical beasts and materials obtained from dungeons, and because it fell under the lord's direct authority, it was an important source of revenue.
The Reberk Barony had an Adventurers' Guild as well, but a Fielders' Guild existed only in larger towns.
Adventurers were free by nature, so lords possessed neither the authority to command them nor the right to conscript them.
In that sense, the Fielders were a state-sanctioned instrument of violence that nobles could hold in private hands, separate from the royal army or domain troops.
"That... sounds troublesome."
Yuri frowned and let the words slip out under his breath.
This looks like a deeper problem than I thought...
When he glanced at Ophelia, he saw that her shoulders were trembling ever so slightly.
Did she have some complicated feelings about Gideon and those three guilds?
"There is no use sitting here and thinking ourselves in circles, is there? Let us consult Liliana as well."
Only moments before, Celine had been drifting in bliss over being called Celia, but apparently she had already returned to reality. As though easing the tension in the room, she cut in with a light voice.
Just as the conversation reached a natural pause, a voice drifted down from just behind Yuri's shoulder.
"My lord husband, preparations for the Entry Ceremony are complete.
It is nearly time for you to head to the carriage."
Yuri jumped in surprise.
When he hurriedly turned around, he found Aina standing behind him before he had even realized she was there.