The inspection, with Sail’s assistance, did not end in failure.
While Marius inherited his father Gasso’s seriousness, he also possessed flexibility.
Marius repeatedly used Teleport, meeting with Executive Officers in various regions and secretly using magic.
It was discovered that all the Executive Officers were loyal and trustworthy individuals, which was a great relief.
Lovisa thought it was understandable that everyone was surprised and tense about the sudden visit from Marius and his party.
They were a rising noble power with great strength, accumulating achievements destined to be passed down for generations.
If angered, they could easily wipe out entire families.
It was deeply regrettable as a Princess, but many commoners held such impressions of nobles.
The forces of Ashton, Bernard, and others, who could be considered the culprits, had fallen into decline.
However, Lovisa believed that spending time with Marius would quickly reveal that these fears were unfounded.
Unlike capable individuals like Lucas and Yaders, Marius did not flaunt his power or act arrogantly.
There were times when she almost misunderstood him, but she realized he had simply misjudged the situation.
Lovisa found his humility appealing.
Though she never showed it out of embarrassment, Emma told her that such restraint was a weakness.
“You need to express yourself through words and actions, even with Lord Marius, or he won’t understand,” Emma said.
Lovisa huffed, thinking it would be a different story if he could read her mind with magic.
Mind-reading magic was considered a thing of legend, so she didn’t quite understand it.
According to what her Father King had told her, it wasn’t a magic that could read everything unconditionally, but she still didn’t like the idea of her thoughts being read.
While she had come to believe Marius was a trustworthy person, this was a separate matter.
To Lovisa, Marius was a very peculiar individual.
His true face was that of someone barely older than herself, yet he possessed such power.
It was said that those who reached the level of a great magician rarely aged, so perhaps he was much older.
Despite this, he could be ignorant of common sense, react in ways that suggested a lack of experience, and show great interest in things he didn’t know.
The most fitting explanation was that he had simply become strong without realizing it, a perfectly ordinary young man.
(That’s impossible, isn’t it?)
The idea of an ordinary young man suddenly becoming strong was on the same level as a child being told, “You must have worked hard at your training,” and receiving a wry smile in return.
Therefore, Lovisa remained unable to categorize Marius and her mind was in a constant state of confusion.
Princess Barra, on the other hand, seemed to think about things very simply.
For Marius to become her husband, for her to sit beside him as his wife.
Lovisa couldn’t imagine it at all, yet she had to do it.
That was her duty as the current Princess of Filat.
(I suppose I lack charm because I can only think this way.)
She could perform self-analysis to that extent, but it was of no use.
It was too late to change her thoughts or her way of life.
That was why she wanted to understand Marius.
This was a foreign land, a country filled with unfamiliar customs.
Having someone who understood him would surely bring him joy.
While despising her own calculating nature, Lovisa still tried.
(I feel like no one is trying to understand Lord Marius.)
This was Lovisa’s vague thought.
Her Father King, Lucas, Nilson, Raymond, as well as Barra and Catherine.
They either wanted to exploit his abilities for the country’s benefit or simply project their own feelings onto him.
Lovisa found this to be very sad.
Would someone truly be happy to be fawned over solely for their abilities and achievements?
Of course, she was aware that she had no right to criticize them for this.
(I’m probably the worst.)
The moment she learned of Marius’s strength, she had included him as a candidate for her husband.
Given that, wouldn’t Marius be lonely if he was surrounded by people similar to herself, who only saw him in that light?
It was like her past self, who was ignored when she proposed new spells.
She had struggled even with her family and her relatively close subordinates.
What must it be like to be completely alone among complete strangers?
Imagining this caused her chest to ache, and she felt a flicker of surprise at her own capacity for sympathy.
In a way, Lovisa had overestimated herself.
She had believed she would always think based on calculation when it came to a marriage partner.
She hadn’t realized that the sorrow she felt imagining Marius’s loneliness stemmed from a genuine emotion, devoid of calculation.
She was still just a girl lacking experience.
Therefore, she couldn’t even imagine that Marius might readily accept it with surprising resignation.
“Excuse me.”
Emma entered with some herbal tea.
Lovisa had been lost in thought and hadn’t ordered any.
Emma had simply predicted that her mistress would likely be engrossed in her thoughts.
“As expected of Emma. A model maid.”
The maid bowed in response to her mistress’s exasperated praise and offered the tea.
“Is this chamomile?”
Emma nodded at Lovisa’s question after taking a sip.
“I brought this because I thought you might be troubled by recent events.”
“We’ve caused Lord Marius to lose face.”
“Yes. It is all a step towards making it known that Lord Marius is an exception beyond all measure.”
This was their plan.
Even Marius, a Royal Court Magician from an aristocratic background, was considered inferior to a Princess of a kingdom and should be treated with utmost courtesy.
Otherwise, it would be considered a great faux pas, and the Royal Family would reprimand them.
But what if the Royal Family showed no reprimand?
What if they readily accepted the Princess accompanying Marius on his various inspections?
“Will it truly create the established fact that Lord Marius is special…?”
At least, it would publicize their extraordinary relationship, implying he could be treated as an equal. But would it work?
Marius had accepted it with a retroactive approval, but this was Marius’s fault.
If nobles were to conduct inspections, they should normally use carriages and do so with dignity.
However, since teleportation magic was used, there was no time to explain beforehand.
Still, the Royal Family should have also learned by now that Marius was that kind of person, making it difficult to say they were entirely without fault.
Marius himself didn’t seem to mind at all, dismissing it with a wry smile and saying he was ignorant, which allowed the matter to be smoothed over.
“I cannot be certain. However, I believe we have no time to hesitate.”
Barra, Catherine, Millie, and Farna were also in the same situation.
It would be problematic to relegate a Princess or noble daughter to the status of a concubine or lover after being married to Marius.
Marius was favorably disposed towards the Filat Royal Family and obeyed them, but he wasn’t confident he would tolerate actions that distorted the country’s customs and debased others.
In the first place, it was not something the Royal Family, the guardians of noble conduct, should do. If they actually did it, they would be no different from those like Bernard and Ashton.
Therefore, she needed to act before anyone else.
For Emma, it wasn’t just about that.
“And if you are bothered by being pursued, why don’t you just say so?”
Emma believed that Marius was ultimately responsible for the current situation.
Given the power dynamic, no one could force Marius to do anything against his will, so a single word from him could shatter it all.
Of course, she understood it was out of consideration for the Royal Family, but she thought there were other ways.
If one were to be harsh, one might suspect he was enjoying being pursued by multiple women.
“There is also the example of the Succubi.”
Setting aside the fact that all three had become his Familiars, he had relations with all of them.
Emma, and likely others, found it incomprehensible that he was hesitant about polygamy but not about Familiars.
While Marius’s origins from a different continent had to be considered.
“That’s true.”
Lovisa nodded once, then added, “However,”
“That’s precisely why I feel the need to understand Lord Marius.”
Emma pondered this, as Lovisa couldn’t quite articulate it in words.
She knew Lovisa occasionally displayed sharp intuition. A good example was Lovisa’s modified spells, which initially began with a vague statement like, “I feel like it can be improved.”
“After all, how much do you really know about Lord Marius?”
She had learned about his favorite foods and his surprisingly considerate nature.
But she still didn’t know where he was born, in what month and year, what level of magic he could wield, and many other things.
In fact, he even seemed to avoid topics that might lead to such discussions.
Perhaps he harbored some terrible secret.
“If that’s the case, he must never have truly opened up. While I have you and Helka, Lord Marius has no one.”
“That…”
Emma was momentarily speechless.
She hadn’t thought Marius was such a delicate person, but given his “considerate nature,” it was plausible that he was simply hiding it.
It was not an outlandish idea.
Emma felt ashamed, wondering why she hadn’t considered this before.
She had likely been blinded by Marius’s overwhelming strength and, without realizing it, had lost her normal judgment.
“It might not be easy, but I want to be the kind of woman who can one day heal his loneliness.”
Emma watched her mistress murmur this with flushed cheeks, feeling a sense of being left behind.
Marius, deemed a lonely individual by the two beauties, was in his bedroom with Zofi.
She had secured her position not through strength, but by the master’s whim.
Succubi, as a race, had the characteristic of growing stronger the more they experienced with strong partners.
This trait remained, even after becoming a Demon, and in fact, their growth potential had been enhanced.
For Zofi, whose entire being was now dedicated to serving and pleasing her beloved master, it was akin to a bonus.
“Master, it seems I’ve powered up again.”
Marius thought, “Succubi are unfair,” in response to Zofi’s report, and then reflected, “If I said that, it would be trouble.” It was fortunate that the more he doted on her, the more her combat strength increased.
Perhaps a new Demon would be born eventually.
Marius was by no means tormented by loneliness.
Thanks to his naturally optimistic personality and a Sage’s boon, he had fully accepted his current situation.
While he felt a strong sense of guilt towards the friends and girls he had left behind, it had receded in his daily life.
“Once the inspection is over, shall we go to the Lake of the Abyss?”
“If it’s just a disposable pawn, there’s no need for you to go, Master. I can handle it myself.”
Marius rejected Zofi’s suggestion.
He thought Rubens might want to see it for himself.
If that happened, Zofi could be in danger.
