Side Story 6
Side Story 6
However, Idina thought Killian’s serious answer was a joke, so she gave a small smile. She quickly got on her tiptoes and kissed Killian on the cheek.
“You’re the only one who would do this for me, really.”
Killian gently touched the spot where her lips had touched with his fingertips and smiled back at her.
“Of course, if you knew how I got all of this… you’d be so touched you’d cry.”
Killian, acting all showy, first pulled out a chair in the middle of the table so Idina could sit down. Idina sat down quickly and her eyes sparkled once again as she looked at the strawberries she had been craving so much.
Then she glanced up at Killian.
“Come to think of it, how did you get all these strawberries? Right now… it’s not the season for strawberries.”
Before answering, Killian put a fresh strawberry in her mouth.
“It’s so delicious…….”
“Is it delicious?”
“I love you, Killian.”
Coming here, receiving Idina’s kiss, hearing her say she loved him, and in many ways, Killian was filled with pride.
The hardships were worth it.
***
In the Escass Empire, especially in the capital area, the transition between winter and summer was so distinct that strawberries were not a good environment to grow.
However, since there were fruits coming from far away regions or other countries, it was not a situation where people could eat them at all.
Idina was the daughter of a great noble, so she must have eaten them often.
However, she wanted to eat strawberries when she was pregnant. When she said so, the strawberry season had already passed and there were none left in the Escass Empire. However, it was not like he could not get them for his pregnant wife if she wanted to eat them.
Killian wanted to get them for her because he loved Idina’s overflowing appetite. First, he looked for countries where strawberries were grown. He first sent letters to places that had moderate exchanges with the Escass Empire.
Of course, he didn’t honestly say that he sent them because his wife wanted to eat them. He approached them in a ‘diplomatic’ manner.
In the form of a very basic barter trade where they would import strawberries.
The problem, however, was that the countries that responded that they were still growing strawberries were places that had not had any exchanges with the Escas Empire.
They don’t have diplomatic relations with all countries, but the fact that they haven’t reached out after operating a country for more than a year or two means that they aren’t friendly countries.
In reality, the countries that responded were places that were almost like brother countries with other countries that often fought for hegemony with the Escas Empire.
It was a headache.
‘If we ask to have diplomatic relations because of strawberries, there’ll be chaos…….’
There was no way his father, the emperor, would allow it. In the first place, he still wondered why Killian married Lady Bride.
Maybe he thought that he had just gotten married because he had a child, or that he had gotten married out of rebellion against them. Or maybe it was because of the dull and boring effect of the omega pheromone.
The father that Killian thought of was someone who could easily be misunderstood. He needed a way to rationally persuade him to overcome the wall.
So what Killian thought was about an equivalent exchange. The logic was simple. Give one, and you get one. Give ten, and you get ten.
And Killian knew best what his father wanted from him.
The Emperor of Escass wanted him to be his true successor.
Killian was currently the official crown prince of the Escass royal family, but that was only because he had no rivals anyway.
Even the Emperor of Escass knew. The fact that Killian is not really interested in the throne and has no will to work for it. He just has a good brain and plays a suitable role but Killian is someone who could throw away the crown of glory on his head and abandon the empire at any time.
He has a younger sister who is different from him anyway, so it would be okay to pass it on to her. However, Emperor Escass acted as if he had a very firm belief that Killian should become the next great emperor.
In particular, after Killian got married, he had been secretly hinting that he wanted to abdicate at any time, but he had intentionally avoided getting involved in internal affairs.
So Emperor Escass must also have realized that something special was needed…….
Killian, who thought that far, thought that everything was set.
The cards that his father and he currently had.
And in fact, if Idina felt happy because of him, even for a moment, Killian would do anything.
It’s funny that he’s so desperate over strawberries.
***
<I will accept the abdication.>
As soon as Killian made up his mind, he went to see his father without hesitation.
A little late, Emperor Escass, who was halfway to bed, came out with his eyelids full of fatigue. He narrowed his eyes when he heard Killian’s words.
It contained the meaning of ‘What are you doing?’ or ‘What are you up to again?’
<Yes.>
<What do you want? Tell me.>
As expected, the emperor was very articulate. Killian felt grateful that the emperor got straight to the point.
Killian said.
<Strawberries.>
<…….>
