Chapter 469
(Kyle Calendar Year 516:
Age 23)
Family Meeting: Beyond
the Doting Parent...
After finishing the audience with the Special
Envoy, the Old Tanuki who had a beaming smile from start to finish, I was
finally able to prepare an opportunity to sit down and talk calmly with Anne.
In place of a dumbfounded me, for some reason, Raymond had prepared a
room next to the audience chamber and gathered the five of them, including Anne,
there for me.
「Anne, I...」
Against me who was about to speak, Anne
smiled gently and stopped me.
「I have
always... served by your side since Takuhir-sama was the same age as Karin.
Therefore, I believe I understand your feelings.」
「T-Thank
you. The truth is, I intended to consult with you beforehand, though.」
There is no falsehood in this. Even if it is a
matter that cannot be refused, the shock on the receiving end changes by orders
of magnitude depending on whether they were informed beforehand or not.
「Truthfully,
all of us had already been told of such matters in advance by Madam.」
「Huh?」
Since when? I didn't know anything about that
either. If Anne says 'Madam', she means my mother, right? With what
intention did my mother bring up such a topic? At her words, all five of them
nodded in the same manner.
「It was
after this year's New Year's banquet. Madam told us, 『Now that the Demon
Territory Dukedom has acquired such immense power, such things will happen
from now on,』 and advised us, 『It is a lonely thing, but as wives, you must
resolve yourselves starting now.』」
Is that about that time? The time when Renka
and Hanano had their births celebrated directly by the Emperor of the
Empire, raising flags for the future? It is true that my mother was also
present there...
『That
child is highly capable, but he is oblivious only to those sorts of things. He
doesn't seem to be paying much mind to today's matters either, so I think he
will panic greatly when talks actually arrive. At that time, he will end up
relying on all of you, so please push him forward. I am sorry for my own
inadequacies.』
「Madam
also said that...」
「......」
Anne spoke as if it was difficult to say, but because it developed exactly
like that, I had no words to reply. Am I still dancing on my mother's palm? As
expected, my mother observes me very well... though it's not a very happy story
for me.
『After
all, this is a world where any woman born as a noble takes it for granted that
she will be married off through 'politics'. Let alone the fact that that child
has awe-inspiringly become the lord of an entire nation. For that reason, your
children cannot escape the fate of becoming bridges that connect nations
together.』
「We
deeply engraved those words we heard from Madam into our hearts. To be honest,
I am an orphan with no relatives. I still think it is rather too much of an
honor for my daughter to be treated in such a way, but...」
That's right. As Claire said, neither I
nor anyone else here is royalty by birth. It's a grandiose tale, and it's only
natural to consider it a matter unrelated to us. Even Yuka and I, who
were born as nobles, were lower nobles at the absolute bottom of the
aristocratic hierarchy.
「However,
I too yearned for such things when reading 『The Tale of Marl』 as a
child. I never thought my daughter would end up in the same position as Marl,
though...」
Eh? Anne had a side like that too? I
thought it was the anecdote least suited to Anne's tastes...
「That is
true. It would also be a strange story for us, who expanded our business by
borrowing Marl's story, to shrink back saying 『our social standings are
different』...」
Hahaha... As Miseri says, it truly feels
like a boomerang has come back to pierce us. After hyping it up that much, it
feels like we'd be told 'Look who's talking'.
「The
truth is... I have also consulted with Madam several times. Is it alright for
me to remain in the position of being called Archduchess? Will the
children born in the future become unhappy due to my origins?」
The one who said that was Yoltia. Was
she still harboring that curse...? I was made keenly aware of it once again.
「There is
no need to worry about such things. Let alone the fact that we have no
intention of forming ties with idiots who would care about such things.」
It is true that she, with her alluring and
exceptionally beautiful appearance, had been humiliated by fools in the
Principality in the past, hadn't she? Is she still worrying about that even
now?
「Yes,
Madam also said the same thing to me. She even went as far as to say, 『You are
all my pride and my precious daughters.』... Therefore, I am fine now. I have decided to
only look forward from here on out.」
For some reason, it seems my mother has been
following up on various things without my knowledge. I need to reflect on
myself as well...
「And
so... regarding something related to this matter, we have something we wish to
consult with Takuhir-sama about.」
The one who said that somewhat hesitantly and
raised her hand was Yuka. A consultation? What matter is this matter?
「I, too,
once served by Clarisse-sama's side for a time, and I was made acutely
aware of just how ignorant I was regarding etiquette and royal manners back
then. There was also a clear difference between me and the young ladies around
me...」
That's right. Yuka served under Princess
Clarisse for nearly a year at the time, so she must have gone through
various hardships. Much less the fact that the noble daughters who attended her
in the same manner were from genuine Marquis and Earl households. Even the
children of lower nobles were from Central Noble families with territories near
the Royal Capital. There must have been a world of difference in that kind of
refinement between them and her, who hailed from a frontier Viscount household.
「So, if
possible, I was wondering if we could build a school in Kusanagi where
one could learn etiquette and the reception of high-ranking individuals, and by
extension, distinguished guests from foreign nations...」
I see, I didn't have that idea. Listening to
her, I had thought about hiring an exclusive private tutor instead.
「And
you're going to have Karin attend that school?」
「Yes, if
one learns etiquette from childhood, they will naturally acquire it.
Furthermore, having others to learn with will be an encouragement, and in the
first place, there are extremely few talented individuals capable of handling
such matters in the Demon Territory Dukedom...」
「Like an
academy's steward and maid training course?」
「There is
that as well, but I would like to make the primary focus learning it as a
preliminary step. For example, preparing an elementary course where one can
learn from age five, and an intermediate course from age ten, to nurture such
talent...」
Huh? It would be a waste to simply teach them.
Now that it's come to this, wouldn't it be more interesting to make it more
full-scale?
「Then,
how about issuing a certificate to those who learn in each course and achieve
grades above a certain level? We can issue a decree stating that the Demon
Territory Dukedom will preferentially hire those who receive certification,
and recruit applicants. In addition, we could offer the privilege of studying
abroad at the academy in the Royal Capital at public expense to outstanding
individuals who graduate from the intermediate course.」
If the study abroad system gets on track, a
certain number of international students from the Demon Territory Dukedom
will always be enrolling in the academy in Kairal in the future. If that
happens, Karin won't be lonely at the academy either. At the very least,
there will be people at the academy she has learned together with since
childhood.
Creating a large-scale school organization for
the sake of one's daughter might seem like the height of being a doting parent
to an outsider, but there are other objectives too. Exchanges with foreign
nations will continue to increase, and securing personnel who can handle such
situations will be necessary. Eventually, we could even invite teachers from
various countries and produce personnel versed even in the etiquette of other
nations... We should even keep in mind the prospect of a talent placement agency,
introducing excellent personnel to various nobles.
「As a
major premise, I'd like to open the doors even to commoners as long as they
have the aspiration, regardless of their social standing, and make it so that
top performers can study entirely free of charge. We already have a completely
free school set up separately, so I think it would be better to differentiate
the entrance examinations and tuition fees.」
Yes, making it completely free broadens the
base, but it also drops the level. Moreover, since it is an educational
institution aiming for professional careers, it would be troublesome if people
came treating it as an extension of play, and above all, it will be the school
where Karin, Renka, and Hanano will attend.
「Then we
will incorporate Takuhir-sama's ideas and, first of all, think over the
plan with everyone and compile a proposal. I am thinking of consulting His
Excellency Klein regarding the dispatch of instructors. Would that be
alright?」
That's right. As long as it's not me consulting
him, it should be fine. If it were me, there's a chance I'd be approached with
various political deals, and it sounds like it would turn into a troublesome
matter.
「I don't
mind. However, could you handle it under the premise that it is not my idea,
but rather an initiative spearheaded by Yuka and the others? To prevent
unnecessary meddling, you know.」
「「「「「Yes!」」」」」
This family meeting progressed in an unexpected
direction, but with Karin's matter settled amicably anyway, I patted my
chest in relief.
Then, finishing up a rough draft within a few
days, the girls proceeded to negotiate directly with Grand Duke Klein—who
was staying in the Demon Territory Dukedom for sightseeing after safely
fulfilling his great mission as a Special Envoy—and secured promises for
the dispatch of instructors and the provision of curriculums from the academy.
And one year later, a specialized educational institution for learning etiquette and reception will be born, featuring three courses: an elementary course and an intermediate course in Kusanagi, and a fully residential advanced course in Teigoon. Aiming to become an institution that introduces and dispatches personnel not only within the Demon Territory Dukedom but also to the Kingdom of Kyle and other foreign nations in the future...