Chapter 44

The daily life of Queen Aura is busy and hectic. She attends important political and military meetings in the conference room, sets aside time to hear petitions from both domestic and foreign visitors in front of her throne, and reviews the piles of dragon skin paper in her office. If she were to try to handle everything perfectly, she would have to bring LED lanterns into her office and cut into her sleep time. If Zenjiro were in her position, he would undoubtedly do just that.

However, Aura is not that clumsy. She knows how to apply and withdraw her efforts to a certain extent. Rather than carrying the burden to the limit and collapsing, it is better in the long run to have her daily work be somewhat incomplete.

With this clear-cut approach, Aura stopped her work in the afternoon and enjoyed a refreshing break in the harem.

At noon, when the sun was pouring down aggressive sunlight, the sound of wood clashing echoed through the harem's courtyard.

"Here, to the right!"

"Ugh!"

The source of the sound was the wooden poles held by Aura and Zenjiro, both about one meter and fifty centimeters long.

Wearing a thin military uniform, Aura skillfully wielded the short spear, while Zenjiro, in a T-shirt and sweatpants, clumsily parried.

"Next, to the left!"

"Ugh!"

"One more, to the right!"

"Ouch!"

Of course, Aura was holding back, but even so, it was a relentless assault for Zenjiro.

With a desperate expression, Zenjiro used the basic defensive stance he learned from Aura to barely parry the attacks.

"Watch your feet!"

"Ah!? Bump!"

Caught off guard, Zenjiro was tripped by the pole and fell flat on his back. Although the soft grass prevented any injuries, it still hurt. However, Zenjiro had no freedom to wallow in the pain.

"Staying still makes you an easy target. Get up quickly! If you can't, at least roll to move."

Saying this, Aura repeatedly swung the pole down next to Zenjiro's face.

"Damn!"

Zenjiro, with a desperate expression, rolled to the side and managed to stand up as quickly as possible. As he rolled, water splashed from his body like a dog shaking off water.

Both Aura and Zenjiro were drenched, not just from sweat but also from the constant spray of the white marble fountain, which continuously spouted water higher than Zenjiro's height.

Aura and Zenjiro were deliberately practicing in the fountain's downwind area. In the current season, with daytime temperatures exceeding forty degrees Celsius, it would be impossible for ordinary people to exercise without such a special environment.

"Alright, one more time, to the feet!"

"Oof!"

This time, Zenjiro avoided the leg sweep by planting the pole in the ground, but Aura's attack did not end there.

"No good, your side is open!"

Aura slid her pole up over Zenjiro's planted pole and hooked it under his arm, pulling it up sharply.

"Whoa!?"

Just as Zenjiro had managed to stand up, he fell flat on the grass again.

There was, of course, a reason why Aura and Zenjiro were spending their precious midday rendezvous on this somewhat violent exercise. Zenjiro wanted to address his long-standing concern about lack of exercise, while Aura wanted to shed the subcutaneous fat that had firmly settled during her pregnancy.

Despite successfully giving birth to the first prince, Aura's weight and figure had not returned to their pre-pregnancy state. This was to be expected.

In modern Japan, with the guidance of doctors and nutritionists, it might be possible to achieve a diet that provides sufficient nutrition for both mother and child without gaining weight. However, in this world with less advanced medical technology, such a diet would only result in malnutrition and endanger the baby.

It was better to be slightly over-nourished than to be malnourished. Following Dr. Michelle's advice, Aura had taken "two people's worth" of nutrition, which inevitably led to her gaining weight.

While being overweight after childbirth was not necessarily a bad thing, as a woman, Aura could not accept her current state.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Aura had an unrelenting source of information in the form of the 'glass mirror' that Zenjiro had brought.

Where a small silver mirror or water mirror might not clearly show her silhouette, the 'glass mirror' would mercilessly reflect it.

Once she saw her slackened jawline in the 'glass mirror,' she could no longer remain silent.

Fortunately, there were no signs of a 'marital crisis' that might arise from her husband's attitude becoming distant, but she could not take advantage of his broad-mindedness.

The saying "beauty fades, and love wanes" may not apply to all couples, but it does reflect a certain truth.

"Alright, this is the last one. Ready? Overhead strike!"

Deliberately making a slightly larger motion, Aura swung the pole straight down at Zenjiro's head. She was holding back enough to stop just before impact, but for Zenjiro, it was still a close call.

"Sei!"

The wooden poles clashed with a metallic sound.

At the last moment, Zenjiro's pole, held horizontally above his head, blocked Aura's downward strike.

"..."

"Alright, that's enough for today."

"Phew!"

With a relieved smile, Aura declared the end of the session, and Zenjiro, with a deep sigh, collapsed onto the grass.

"Phew..."

"Ha, ha, ha..."

Aura, slightly out of breath, sat on the edge of the fountain, closing her eyes in contentment as the water mist cooled her back. Meanwhile, Zenjiro lay flat on the grass, panting heavily.

"Are you okay, Zenjiro?"

Aura, who seemed to have recovered from her fatigue, retrieved a water bottle from the fountain and placed it next to Zenjiro's face.

"Ugh... ha, ha... Gulp, gulp..."

Struggling to sit up, Zenjiro, without even thanking Aura, gulped down the contents of the bottle in one go.

The drink was a mixture of citrus fruit juice and brown sugar. Although it was not very cold, having been placed in the fountain, the lukewarm temperature was refreshing and welcome.

"Phew... I feel alive again!"

After drinking the entire 500 ml bottle, Zenjiro exhaled with a sense of relief.

The sudden intake of water caused a rush of sweat to pour from his body. Combined with the heat from the exercise and the light bruises from Aura's strikes, he felt like diving into the fountain.

"Seems like you've caught your breath. How about it? I tried to be careful when striking, but are there any painful spots?"

In response to Aura's question, Zenjiro patted his still weak body.

Indeed, during the training, he had been struck and poked numerous times, but there were no particularly painful areas.

The tips of the training poles were covered with several layers of soft fabric, but they were still solid wooden poles about one and a half meters long. A misstrike could easily cause muscle or vascular damage, or even bone fractures. However, Aura had skillfully controlled her strikes.

Zenjiro seemed to have no injuries worse than light bruises.

"I think I'm okay. My left side and right thigh are a bit sore, but that's all. See?"

To demonstrate, Zenjiro stood up. His legs, still weak from fatigue, trembled like a newborn fawn, but there were no painful spots when he applied pressure.

He then sat down on the edge of the fountain, as Aura had done earlier. His exhausted body felt like it might fall into the fountain if he wasn't careful, but it wasn't deep enough to be dangerous.

He considered lying back and submerging his overheated body in the water.

Just as he glanced back at the fountain, Aura approached and asked:

"So, how was it? Your first spear training. What do you think?"

Sitting down next to Zenjiro on the edge of the fountain, Aura's height advantage was more noticeable when they were both seated. Whether Zenjiro's legs were short or Aura's were long, it was not a pleasant thought to dwell on. Zenjiro dismissed the question and answered:

"Well, I knew it would be tough, and I didn't expect to be able to hold my own, but it was even more challenging than I thought. I couldn't even move my hands or feet. It reminded me of a practice match against J Youth when I was in the high school soccer club."

Despite the use of terms like "high school," "soccer club," and "J Youth" that didn't work as 'word spirits,' the first part of his statement was clear enough.

"Indeed, unless you are exceptionally talented, it is not a world where an amateur can compete with a seasoned practitioner. If you had started training as young as I did, you might be stronger than me by now."

Aura, who did not overestimate her combat skills, laughed.

In fact, Aura's combat skills were at best average for a knight. She could not compare to a renowned warrior like General Pujol Gijen.

Zenjiro, while not particularly well-built or athletic, was not particularly uncoordinated either.

Without exaggeration, if he had trained as much as Aura since childhood, he would likely have developed similar combat skills.

Zenjiro understood that Aura's words were genuine, but he also grasped the underlying meaning that "it's too late to make up for lost time at this age," and could only smile wryly.

"Ahaha, thanks. Well, for me, it's just about building strength. I don't plan to use combat skills in any real situation."

"That's the right attitude. Of course, if you want to take it seriously, I won't stop you, but there's no need to push yourself if you don't."

Aura affirmed her husband's words with a smile.

Indeed, considering Zenjiro's position as one of the few royal family members in the great kingdom of Carpia, situations where combat skills would be useful were almost nonexistent.

Zenjiro, while interested in learning spear and sword techniques as a form of sport, did not imagine himself using these weapons on a real battlefield.

"Yeah, I don't plan to take it that seriously. Besides, with my strength, it's tough to handle this with one hand..."

Zenjiro, still sitting on the edge of the fountain, lifted the wooden pole with one hand.

For now, he was only learning the basics of handling the pole with both hands, but in actual combat, the short spear was often used with one hand while holding a wooden shield in the other.

Furthermore, a true warrior could use it as a throwing spear in emergencies. Until he could do that, his current level of skill was not much different from a health exercise.

"Indeed. You lack the arm strength to wield a spear as a soldier."

In response to Aura's words, Zenjiro dramatically clutched his head.

"Wow, you said it... But, it's true. Your strikes were so heavy, I almost couldn't keep the pole from flying out of my hands."

The casual mention of "heavy" and "flying out" seemed to indicate that Zenjiro's mind was dulled by fatigue. Normally, he would not make such a mistake.

"R-really? That heavy?"

Even Aura's expression cracked.

"Yeah, incredibly heavy. Each strike felt like it would knock me off my feet. It's hard to believe your skills are just average for a knight. I guess I'm just weak, though."

Zenjiro laughed innocently.

"Heavy, flying out, weighty. Even though you didn't mean it, these words are a bit harsh for me right now."

This was not good. If the conversation continued, it might lead to their first marital argument.

"Ah, right. By the way, a bit of a change of topic, but there was an issue brought up in this morning's morning council. I don't think it will directly affect you, but I'll report it just in case.

Regarding the 'Salt Road,' which you learned about in Octavia's class, there has been a problem on the Salt Road..."

In an effort to maintain a harmonious relationship, Aura quickly changed the subject, speaking faster than usual.