Chapter 5

"Ah, well, then, if I were to accept this proposal, what kind of obligations would I have in this world? After all, a queen's husband is also a member of the royal family, right?"

In response to Zenjiro's question, which seemed to carry a positive intent, Aura smiled happily and answered.

"There are no specific regulations. After all, I am the thirty-second king in our country, but I am only the fourth queen in the history of the Kingdom of Kaarpa.

Moreover, the previous three queens remained single throughout their lives, adopting heirs from closely related branches of the royal family or passing the throne to much younger brothers who were still infants at the time of their ascension.

In other words, you, Lord Zenjiro, would be the first queen's husband in the Kingdom of Kaarpa."

Casually, Aura referred to Zenjiro as a "husband," but Zenjiro did not notice this and instead panicked over a different point.

"Wait a minute! Does that mean there are no written rights or obligations for a queen's husband in this country?"

A queen's husband, or "king consort," refers to the queen's partner. In a country where no queen has ever married, this term might not even exist.

"Yes. On paper, that's the case. However, rest assured, Lord Zenjiro. Our country, as evident from the fact that out of thirty-two monarchs, only four have been queens, is a male-dominated society. Especially at home, the head of the household is always a man, and it is considered virtuous for a wife to support her husband.

In any form, if we were to marry, I would do my best to accommodate your wishes."

"H-hmm..."

Zenjiro, who received an offer far better than he had expected, responded with a dazed voice. If he were to believe Aura's words entirely, marrying her would mean he had no significant obligations, and she would do her best to accommodate him.

...It was too good to be true.

(No, I need to think carefully. There must be a catch here.)

It was a tempting offer, one that made him want to jump at it without hesitation.

Zenjiro desperately tried to think through the situation in his head.

(First of all, if this marriage were to go through, what would be the benefit for Aura? The continuation of the royal bloodline? Is that all?)

If the other members of the royal family were extinct, Zenjiro, who carries the royal bloodline, would indeed be very attractive.

However, would she offer such favorable conditions just for that? A husband who does nothing but have children. In the world, such men are called "parasites."

(Does this mean Aura is an extremely high-level 'damen-zu walker'? No, that can't be right...)

If not, there must be a bigger benefit for Aura. Otherwise, even if Zenjiro were a suitable husband in terms of bloodline, she wouldn't have offered such favorable conditions from the start.

(No, I don't have enough information.)

'Remember, if you try to force a deal with insufficient information, you'll always be at a disadvantage.' Recalling the words his senior at work had often told him, Zenjiro asked Aura a series of questions.

"Sorry, but let's go back to the beginning. If I were to decline this proposal, what would happen to you, Aura? You can't just not get married, right?"

"Yes. In that case, I would probably have to marry a noble within the country who has a relatively strong royal bloodline. However, even the strongest bloodline is quite diluted."

That's why, knowing it would be a burden, I called you, Lord Zenjiro. Aura smiled self-deprecatingly.

(I see. There are potential husbands within the country. Of course, that makes sense. ...Wait, let me test this a bit.)

"Would the potential husband have a royal ancestor, like a great-grandfather or great-grandmother?"

Unaware of Zenjiro's probing, Aura shook her head with a wry smile.

"Hardly. At best, it would be someone whose great-great-grandfather was a royal, or whose great-grandmother was a royal."

(Bingo!)

Zenjiro hid his inner surprise and managed to maintain a poker face. As his boss at the company had said, 'For a salesperson, facial expressions should be controlled by reason, not emotion.' This advice was proving useful even in this different world.

Aura's response was clearly odd. A great-great-grandfather would be five generations back, and a great-grandmother would be four generations back.

On the other hand, Zenjiro's ancestors from Earth were from five generations back. If, as Aura said, there were people from four generations back, there would be no reason to summon someone from five generations back.

The village where Zenjiro grew up was closed, which resulted in him having a very strong royal bloodline. However, Aura wouldn't have known this until she summoned him. Indeed, she had called it a "pleasant surprise."

In other words, the explanation that she summoned a candidate from another world to have a child with a strong royal bloodline was a lie.

(Then why did she summon me? Could the whole proposal be a lie? No, that's not right. If I start doubting everything, there's no end to it.)

After all, Zenjiro had no way to return to his original world on his own. Considering this, there was no need for Aura to trick him. She could simply lie about not having a way to return him to his original world.

It seemed that Aura was trying to negotiate with Zenjiro as honestly as possible.

(Therefore, I can assume that her proposal to marry me and the unusually favorable conditions are true. This makes more sense. If so, why? Why did Aura summon a descendant of a royal family who fled to another world, with a weaker bloodline, instead of a domestic noble with a stronger bloodline?)

"Lord Zenjiro? What do you think?"

"Ah, no. Sorry, I was just thinking. So, if I were to marry you, Aura, what would be your ideal situation for me? Not legally, but just your personal preference."

In response to Zenjiro's question, Aura shrugged and answered clearly.

"Nothing in particular. Accepting this proposal means that you, Lord Zenjiro, are willing to give up your homeland, family, and previous life for me. I am not so shameless as to impose further demands on such a person.

Just helping to continue the royal bloodline by having children would be sufficient."

It seemed that the only obligation would be to have children with the busty beauty in front of him. At least, from Zenjiro's perspective, Aura seemed to be sincere.

"I see..."

Aura's response was as sweet as ever, capable of turning any man into a "parasite." However, this time, Zenjiro had anticipated such an answer.

(Could it be that my hypothesis is correct? The conditions offered are not just favorable for me. Were these conditions, from the beginning, the most desirable for Aura?)

Zenjiro organized the information he had gathered so far in his head.

- There are nobles within the country with a stronger royal bloodline than the descendants of the royal family who fled to another world.

- Despite this, Aura deliberately summoned a descendant of the royal family who fled to another world (Zenjiro) as a potential husband.

- As a result, Zenjiro has a very strong royal bloodline, but this was a "pleasant surprise."

- Aura told Zenjiro, "As long as you help with having children, you don't need to do anything else."

- This country is a male-dominated society, and the role of a queen is rare.

- In this country's culture, the head of the household is always the husband, and it is virtuous for the wife to support her husband.

- All previous queens remained single throughout their lives, and the existence of a "king consort" is unprecedented in the country's history.

From her responses and the overwhelming charisma she exuded, Aura seemed to possess the qualities of a capable queen.

To verify his hypothesis, Zenjiro continued to ask questions.

"Let me ask two more questions. If I were to stay in this country, where would I live?"

"Most likely, in the harem. Originally, in our country, it was common for a king to have multiple wives, including a queen and concubines. While it's a bit unconventional, our living space as a couple would be in the harem."

As expected, it was almost certain.

Zenjiro swallowed hard and asked the final, decisive question.

"Then, my last question.

If, after marrying you, I were to seclude myself in the harem, cut off all contact with the outside world, and have no interaction with anyone in the palace except you, and just spend my days idly, how would you feel about that?"

To Zenjiro's hypothetical scenario, Aura responded with what seemed to be the happiest smile of the day.

"Most welcome!"

With those words, Zenjiro was convinced that his hypothesis was entirely correct.

(Okay, all the mysteries are solved. No doubt about it. This woman isn't just offering the condition of "doing nothing" as a bait. She genuinely wants a husband who does nothing.)

Literally, she was welcoming a "parasite" as her first choice.

Upon reflection, it wasn't such an unnatural idea.

The mistake was trying to measure things by Zenjiro's values, shaped by his life in a semi-black company, where he was constantly overwhelmed by work.

A man who is tired of work would find the idea of a life with free food, shelter, and a beautiful wife appealing, but this is not the general value in this world.

For a "king consort" to work means to exercise power.

Men who do not find the exercise of significant power appealing are likely in the minority.

Even if this country does not have written authority, a "king consort" is a legitimate power holder.

After all, the culture of the kingdom is centered around a male-dominated society, and the head of the household is always a man, even if he is a groom.

Furthermore, if a woman becomes a wife, it is considered virtuous to support her husband as much as possible. In extreme cases, a "king consort" might even be able to "command" the queen through the "household."

At the very least, if a "king consort" expresses an opinion in an official setting, the queen cannot ignore it.

(That's right. A noble-born husband would likely have a desire for power, and if such a person were to become a "king consort," there's a risk that Aura's power could be completely taken over. Even if it doesn't go that far, he would likely direct benefits to his own family.)

A dual power structure between the queen and the king consort. In the worst case, it could lead to a civil war that splits the country in two.

(I see. Considering this, it makes sense why she would want to summon a husband from another world. While there's no guarantee that a husband from another world won't have political ambitions, at the very least, he won't have ties to a powerful family. Even if he doesn't wield power as an external relative, it's still a significant advantage.)

Throughout history, the relatives of a monarch's spouse—external relatives—have often been the cause of national turmoil.

After observing Zenjiro's continuous questioning with interest, Aura, seeing that he had calmed down, asked:

"I understand that it's unreasonable to expect an immediate answer to such a life-changing decision. However, as I mentioned earlier, the summoning magic is influenced by the alignment of the stars, so time is limited.

You don't need to give me an answer right away, but I would like you to make a decision by tomorrow morning.

This is a situation that arose entirely from our side. Even if you decline, I will not harm you in any way, and if you accept, I promise to treat you with as much sincerity as possible as your wife.

What do you think, Lord Zenjiro?"

Aura spoke with a soft smile and a serious gaze.

"Yes, I understand..."

Zenjiro closed his eyes lightly and thought.

If his hypothesis was correct, this was a very favorable deal.

However, as he had mentioned multiple times, the cost was his entire life on Earth up to this point.

Despite everything, Zenjiro, as a man, had supported himself, disciplined himself, and sustained himself.

Indeed, his job was tough, and he often thought about quitting, but he had a sense of pride in living an independent life.

This was a kind of 'dignity' as a man.

Accepting Aura's proposal meant giving up that 'dignity' and accepting a life of being supported by a woman.

Was that really acceptable? Was the 'dignity' of Yama Zenjiro so light and easily discarded?

(If I think about it calmly, there's no real dilemma here.)

It wasn't something to drag out until the next morning. The conclusion had already been reached.

With his mind made up, Zenjiro opened his eyes, looked directly into Aura's reddish-brown eyes, leaned forward over the table, and said firmly:

"Let's get married! Aura!"

The 'dignity' of Yama Zenjiro as a man was, indeed, as light as a feather.